Whatever It Takes 2: Reflections
by djghostwriter18
Summary: Months after Fiona left for New York, James attempts to move on with Holly J. But when he meets her and her new lover, will he be able to bury former feelings or will they resurface?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **Don't own Degrassi. What a surprise?

**A/N:** So here is the sequel to Whatever It Takes that follows James Nichols (OC) at the University of Southern Toronto. It starts around the mid-March, approximately seven months after the Las Vegas trip. As stated in the first story, it is AU and it is rated M for a reason. Oh well, on with the story.

* * *

><p><strong>Whatever It Takes II: Reflections<strong>

**_Chapter 1: The Reunion_**

Twenty years old James Nichols sat in his condo with his head resting on the back of his couch. Between exams, The Core, his new job at The Break Room, and his helping hand with the plays, he was thoroughly tired.

"Tell me." Of course this would not stop his girlfriend from questioning him about the surprised trip him and his friend Declan Coyne had planned as a retreat.

James watched her straddled his lap. He had his fair share with teases, Manny Santos being one of the more recent ones, but Holly J Sinclair was a seducing devil when she wanted to be. If she wanted to get a secret out of his stubborn mouth, she knew how to do it.

"Tell me." she purred in his ear, grinding her hips into his.

"HJ…" James groaned as he felt her rotating her hips against his. "I can't."

She paused. "Why not?"

"Because then it wouldn't be a surprise, now would it, love?" James retorted.

Holly J looked at him before continuing her actions. He figured she was going to make him pay for not telling him. She normally did.

It was ironic on how he and Holly J became a couple. It happened a few weeks after he and Anya MacPherson had broken up. Yeah, that's right, Holly J's best friend. He and Anya began dating near mid-October, days after Sav broke up with her. They soon broke up after it was clear that she was not over Sav, and James and Holly J began dating. Ironically, Anya and Sav were still no longer together, she dating the quarterback, Riley Stavros, and Sav was rumored to be seeing his sister's Media Immersion's teacher, Winnie Oh.

James smirked at the thought of the older woman. Sav was one lucky bastard.

"Tell me and I'll fix that." Holly J murmured before kissing his neck, a hand on the growing bulge in his pants.

"I can't." James said. "Declan and Jane isn't here yet."

"I don't care." Holly J said before gripping his length through his jeans. "Tell me where we're going."

James's hands moved towards her waist, but she immediately swatted his hands away. This was her game. She would be in charge of this torturing until he told her what she wanted. Then and only then would he be able to do what he wanted.

"I have to call Manny." James lied.

Holly J gave him a leveled stare. "We already stopped by, remember?" James bit back a groan as she pressed herself against him more. "Are you trying to leave me? Using your baby mama as a means of escape?"

James only smirked. During the, now unspoken about, trip to Las Vegas Manny ended up pregnant with his child. It was no big deal (apparently their parents didn't see it as "no big deal" though) seeing as they were great friends and Craig seemed to be an understanding guy about the whole ordeal. Of course, with it now being in March and Manny now seven months pregnant, things became more complicated. Craig, Manny's current boyfriend, had to do runs for James whenever he was unavailable and both of them were subjected to her mood swings. It was terribly annoying.

"No, I wouldn't do that." Holly J's face showed that she wasn't buying it and kept her tease up.

"You can touch me if you tell me." she said with a smile. James let out a small chuckle. "I know you really want to."

"I can't." James told her though he was really thinking about just telling her the entire thing. How he and Declan planned it, where they planned to go, how long they would be there, everything. Her red shirt that revealed quite the amount of cleavage and the black skirt she was wearing was already enticing enough. The grinding was just plan torture. "But I really want to."

Holly J seemed to be at a lost as she stopped. James realized that this has never happened. She has _never_ lost an argument using her seducing abilities. And something told him that she was not about to start now.

"Okay." she moved off of him only to turn around and sit on his lap. "Then let's just watch TV."

"HJ…" his voice was almost cracking from her pushing herself against him. She leaned back, the back of her head resting on his shoulder as she let out a moan. "Stop doing that."

She smiled innocently. "You know how to make it stop."

"You know I can't…" James's words died as she placed a finger against his lips, her grinding becoming more intense.

"Not a word unless you tell me." James groaned as he felt his hips moving in sync with hers now.

A knock came on the door causing Holly J to completely stop. She gave James a look before moving off of him, sitting on the couch beside him.

"I'm not waiting another day." she told him.

James smiled as he rose, thanking his decision of clothing today. His pants, boxers, and shirt did a pretty good job at hiding his throbbing erection.

James opened the door to see his best friend Declan and Declan's girlfriend, Jane Vaughn. They had been together since the Vegas trip and were still together even after the Christmas fiasco. Apparently, when Declan introduced Jane to his parents, they did not approve as Laura had done James in the beginning of September. Of course, James was in D.C at the time with his own family so he does not know the entire story.

"Please, come in." James said heading back for the living room.

"She giving you a hard time?" Declan questioned.

"I heard that Coyne." Holly J said. "Why not just tell me already and things will be a lot easier for the both of you?"

"I hate to break it to you, but we're not telling you until we're on the plane." Declan said.

"I don't think I'll last mate." James told Declan. "Holly J has her ways of making me talk."

Declan raised his brows. "No sex? Believe me, Jane's been holding out since mid-January." James looked at Jane, who took a seat beside her friend on the couch. "Besides, I'm waiting on someone."

"Do you know Jaime? It would help if you did." Jane said.

James frowned. "No, I don't know who he's waiting for."

Declan shrugged. "It'll be a surprise for all of us then."

"Listen here," Holly J stated. "I want to know where we're going."

"Make that two of us." Jane said crossing her arms.

"I'll give you a hint, it's not in Canada." Declan said.

Jane scoffed. "Some hint. I could've guessed that."

"Jaime you'd better tell me now or else your child will be fatherless." Holly J announced.

James opened his mouth to answer before his door opened. He was seconds away from shouting at whomever opened the door to his condo before his throat grew extremely dry extremely fast.

"Surprise!" Fiona said happily as she moved into the room.

James stared at his ex as she moved down the small hall towards him and hugged him.

"Did you miss me?" she asked before moving towards Declan. "Mom says to check in with her before and after we land. Kind of a…" Fiona's words died when she spotted Holly J. "Okay… What is she doing here?"

"Bird," James said, feeling a bit happy that he could once again say that word and get the attention of the girl he was calling. "Holly J and I are together."

Fiona gasped before looking at Declan who only shrugged. Apparently all the while Declan and Fiona has been keeping in touch, Declan had not let it slip that James was seeing Holly J. This was going to be a long trip.

"Well… That's great. I'm happy." Fiona said. "Oh! You two haven't met Charlie! I'll be right back."

Fiona moved to leave the home as James and Declan exchanged glances. James has had no contact with Fiona since she left. She did not call, she did not stop by, she did not send e-mails or letters. Nothing. He saw her once on TV in late November when rumors were being spread that she had "replaced him" for a high school sweetheart named Sebastian. Obviously, Sebastian got dumped for this Charlie guy.

"You called your sister?" James asked Declan.

Declan shrugged. "She's got time off at the same time we do. I figured that the three of us could use some sort of reunion, right?"

James nodded silently. Declan knew that James still had a thing for Fiona and James suspected that she did too as Declan _always_ had to update her about his well-being.

"Ta-da!" Fiona said reentering the room. Jaws dropped at the sight of Charlie. "Declan, Jaime, this is my girlfriend, Charlie Lima. Charlie, this is my twin Declan and my best friend Jaime."

"You have a girlfriend." Declan said in a plain voice.

Fiona sighed. "It's a _long_ story, but I am forever off of men."

"It's nice to meet you both. Fiona's told me a lot about you." Charlie said before eying James. "Both of you actually."

James grinned. "Likewise mate."

"So," Fiona said clapping her hands. "Did you tell her- _them_- yet?"

"We were doing that now bird." Fiona sighed in excitement as James turned to address his girlfriend and Jane. "We're going to-"

"Hawaii!" Fiona said happily.

Holly J's eyes widened. "What? Really?" James nodded and the cheerleader sprung from her seat and latched onto him. "You're amazing Jaime!"

James only held Holly J as her legs went around his waist. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Fiona look elsewhere. He felt a familiar guilt that he had not felt in such a long time, but brushed it aside once he felt Holly J's lips against his. He responded to the kiss and set her down.

"You might want to go get your things love." James said to her.

Holly J nodded and moved for the master bedroom.

"Well," Fiona said. "You didn't take long finding my replacement. I mean, for a roommate and all."

"She hasn't moved in completely." James said as if he was defending himself.

"Right. So how long?" Fiona asked.

James sighed as he thought. "Um, since late November, early December."

"You two look happy together." Charlie said with a friendly smile.

James shrugged. "A lot of arguments and support will do that."

"I'll say." Jane said with a smirk.

Fiona frowned. "What happened?"

"Have you heard about Manny?" Fiona shook her head. "Well… Um…" James did not know whether or not he should tell her about Manny's pregnancy, but soon thought nothing of it. If she was angry, she would not show it in front of Charlie. "When Manny and I slept together in Vegas, she ended up pregnant. And Holly J's mom did not originally like the idea of her daughter dating a soon-to-be father. But that's all behind us now."

"Vegas? Manny got pregnant in Vegas?" James nodded at Fiona's question. "Well… I'm happy that everything turned out alright."

"How long have you been with Charlie?" James questioned. He felt tension rising between him and Fiona and hoped that small talk would settle it.

"Not long. Mid-January. About a day or two after her parents' separation." Charlie answered.

"Uh-huh." Declan stated. "So can we go now?"

"I'll go see what's taking her so long." James said moving away.

Up until Holly J met his family in December, James had always dreamt that one day he would wake up and Fiona would be lying beside him in the bed. Sometimes he dreamt that she would be awake and smiling at him and others he dreamt that she would be asleep, trying to snuggle up against him. But now that she was here with Charlie, he felt really awkward. Not because he found out that his ex was now a lesbian, but because the flames that he had once seen in her eyes were still there. For him or Charlie, he did not know, but they were there.

"You about ready love?" James asked coming to his room.

"Oh, yeah," Holly J said zipping up her traveling bag. "Not all of us packed earlier because we didn't know where we were going."

James smiled. "Sorry about that. But now that you know, you can fix the problem you started, right?"

"If we start now we'll miss our flight." Holly J said. "But, because you're such an amazing guy, as soon as we get to the hotel, I'm yours."

The words nearly sent chills down James's spine. As stated before, neither Manny nor Fiona could compare to Holly J in the sex department. She was completely different from the snobby, honor-roll cheerleader a lot of students saw her to be. She was his sexual challenge, never just allowing him to assume dominance, and he was hers. Only when she was teasing him was she ever in complete control. Other than that, they used whatever trick that they had to assume the dominant role.

"Let's go then." James said grabbing the bag he had already packed and Holly J's.

"Hey," she said stopping him from exiting the room. "Is this going to be awkward for you? You know, you seeing Fiona for the first time since September and now she's here with her girlfriend."

James gave Holly J a smile. "I have you, Holly J. I think I'll survive."

The statement drew a smile on Holly J's face. Another thing no one really knew but James was the real sweet side of his girlfriend. She was very helpful when it came to homework (the stuff she knew that is) and between work and school, she would volunteer to help James, Jane, and sometimes Declan.

"Let's go." she said as James led her out of the room.

"You don't mind that I got one of your energy drinks do you?" Charlie questioned James as he and Holly J stepped in-between the kitchen and living room.

"No problem." James said. He heard the snickering between the Coyne twins, they obviously picking up on the lie. "Are we going?"

"Yes we are." Jane said. "Let's go Declan."

"I'm going, I'm going." Declan said. "Fi? Charlie? Coming?"

"Let's go Charlie." Fiona said. "Oh, and Jaime, you missed a spot."

James frowned. "Missed what spot bird?"

"You cleaned the windows didn't you?" Fiona said pointing to the floor to ceiling windows in the living room. James nodded. "You missed a spot. There." James and Holly J looked to see where Fiona was pointing to. "Obviously you can see that."

"Let's go Fiona." Charlie told her girlfriend as she led her out of the home, taking the energy drink with her.

James looked at Holly J who shrugged.

"She's your friend." Holly J said walking for the door.

James only sighed. "Why can't I get a break?"

* * *

><p>The trip to the airport had been quite the eventful one. Fiona had chosen to ride with James in his Explorer, surprised that he had sent his Nissan GT-R back to D.C in exchange for an SUV. But she did not complain and filled him in on her time at NYU. He was shocked that she had so many new friends in NYU seeing as he was her <em>only<em> friend at the University of Southern Toronto (UST). Some things changed, he figured.

"So," Fiona continued. "That's why Sebastian and I just couldn't work and why I'm forever off of men."

Holly J allowed a smirk to play on her lips.

"So… Jaime was the last guy you slept with huh? You must've been unfulfilling Jaime." she said.

James ignored his girlfriend, despite the phrase doing a number to his pride.

Fiona smiled. "No, that's not it. Jaime's a good lover."

"Oh, I know." Holly J replied. "It's just funny to think about it."

"Where's Declan?" Charlie asked looking around.

James shrugged. "Probably already on the plane. He did say that he wanted to rest a bit. All the last minute things with the play, I don't blame him."

"You guys are doing another play? When? I wanted to go to the last one but I had exams." Fiona said. "Was it any good?"

"It got a good reception." James replied as the group moved for the line to the metal detectors. "And that's all we can ask for."

Fiona nodded. "I see. So… Have you spoken to your dad recently?"

James shook his head. "Not since the end of January. Work keeps me busy." Fiona frowned. "I got a job at The Break Room. Apparently celebrity bartenders draw in a crowd."

Fiona's brows shot up. "Oh! I didn't hear that about you." Fiona then smiled. "Remember the last time we went to the Break Room?"

"Kind of hard to forget bird." James replied. "But, things have changed, right?"

"Right." James heard her voice and it did not sound all that convincing. He ignored it for the sake of Holly J and Charlie. They did not need to be dragged into his and Fiona's problems. "Um, my mom says hi, by the way."

"Hmm…" James hated Laura Coyne with all his being. It was _her_ decision to take Fiona away from him and thus it was _her_ fault that Fiona was here with Charlie and he was here with Holly J.

"I can't wait until we're in Hawaii." Holly J stated. "Where are we going? Where are we staying?"

"Now that's a surprise that I won't tell you until we get there." James said. Holly J gave him a fixed stare that told him that more devious seduction was to come if he did not change his mind, but he kept the façade up that he did not care. "Declan and I went through a _lot_ to plan this surprised getaway. _Something_ has to be a surprise."

Holly J crossed her arms. "I guess you're right."

"My arms are so tired." Fiona whined.

James almost moved to take Fiona's bags from her hands before he paused. The Las Vegas trip, he did it without thinking. In fact, he did it without her saying anything at all. In Vegas, he was her lover. Now he was only a friend.

"Do you mind holding these for me?" Fiona asked Charlie.

"I have bags of my own." Charlie countered.

Fiona then looked at James. He sighed in defeat before shifting his and Holly J's bags so that he held those two in one hand and Fiona's in the other.

"Thanks Jaime." Fiona said.

James nodded. "No problem bird."

"I wonder what your brother has in store for us." Charlie said, drawing Fiona's attention.

"Knowing Dex and Jaime," Fiona stated. "Anything is possible. And I do mean _anything_."

"We'll see." Holly J said.

James only smiled. This was probably going to be more trouble than it was worth, but at least he got to be with the woman he loved. Too bad she was currently in a relationship with another woman and he with Holly J.


	2. Chapter 2

**_Chapter 2: The Aloha State_**

James sighed as they stepped for the Hilton Waikoloa Village resort. The sun was shining brightly on The Big Island and he was currently in a happy mood.

And of course, Holly J was in a happier mood.

"How'd you get us this?" she asked him as they moved with the group towards the Palace Towers.

James smiled. "Are you complaining?"

"What? No." Holly J said. "I just wanted to know."

The six walked into the lobby, taking in the view around them. They soon made their way up to the desk.

"May I help you?" the woman asked with a friendly smile.

"Um, we have reservations." Declan stated.

"Okay. Tell me your names." she asked.

"Coyne and Nichols." Declan answered.

"Coyne. Coyne. Two suites? One Palace Suite and one Royal Suite?" Declan nodded. "Alright, here are your keys. And for Nichols…" the woman paused as she scanned the list. "Ah. One Palace Suite."

"That's us." James said taking his and Holly J's keys. He then addressed the Coyne twins. "I'm going to go lie down. "Call me when you guys want to meet up for lunch."

"Will do." Declan replied.

James began leading Holly J away from the others, she walking beside him with a smile on her face.

"What's with the grin HJ? You look like you're about to explode with excitement." James said to her, a smile on his face as well.

"Nothing. I just feel very lucky. Very, _very_ lucky." Holly J answered.

"You haven't seen lucky yet." responded James.

James led Holly J to their suite on the fifth floor. He opened the door and allowed her to walk in and take it all in.

"Oh my God…" she gasped looking around. "How much did this cost?"

James shrugged. "Win a few bets and it's not much."

Holly J gave him a curious stare but then moved for the lanai off of the dining room. James grinned at her obvious approval and moved to put the bags in the bedroom. Once he had put their bags in a corner, he fell onto his back on the bed, instantly closing his eyes. It had been a long year so far and sleep was something he longed for.

"I guess," James opened his eyes to see Holly J moving into the bedroom. "I owe you one for the teasing, huh? You looked like you were in pain on the plane."

James gave her a fixed stare to show his annoyance at her previous actions. It was one thing for her to use her teasing techniques in the comfort of privacy, but on a plane? James was only glad that he had the self control that he had or else he would have gone all out on her on the plane. And he did not need someone recording him having sex with his girlfriend on the plane.

"But as promised, I'm yours." Holly J said as she sensually crawled atop of James. "That is, if you want me."

"When don't I love?" James asked before kissing her.

Her lips tasted of strawberries, befitting for her hair color. James rolled them over, starting their normal battle of dominance. Surprisingly though, she gave no fight, instead just pushing her hips up to meet his, moaning into each kiss. James was going to pull away from their kissing, but she caught his body lip with her teeth, keeping him from going too far. James only smiled and continued to kiss her feverishly. She knew how to fight off of her back, that was for sure.

The world seemed to be at its calmest with them like this, her fingers attempting to pull his shirt over his head without breaking the connection between their lips and tongues. Unfortunately, James had to pull away to toss his shirt over his head, something that caused Holly J to sit up as well. He was not surprised when she threw off her own shirt, revealing her light blue bra beneath it. Before James could comment on how he beautiful she was, she rejoined their lips, pushing him onto his back. Now straddling him once more, Holly J began her grinding, this time a little more forceful than the previous ones.

But James knew how to play this game all to well. He moved on of his hands up her skirt, finding the wet spot in her panties. It always amazed him on how ready she would be for these sorts of things. Still, he rubbed her through her panties, feeling the moisture grow more and more.

Holly J moaned as she began to move her hips on his hand, trying to build more friction. James took that moment to roll them back over, his hand never slowing down at all. Now on top once more, James pulled her skirt and panties off in one trip and went back to kissing her while pushing his middle and index finger inside of her. Her back arched off of the bed completely as he kept this up, moaning all the way. James figured that he would be in control of this session since she was currently writhing beneath him due to his fingers.

Of course, this was not the case as she rolled them back over, her hips still moving with his fingers, and gripped his pants. After unbuttoning them and unzipping them, she moved off of his hand and took his jeans off instantly. She then positioned herself over his detained shaft and rubbed herself against him with a steady pace. James let a groan escape his lips as he felt her breath against his neck. She was now in charge and winning because of that. This meant that he had to do something quick before she assumed supremacy.

His hands moved up her back and unclasped her bra. With that out of the way, he was free to knead her breasts freely, this causing her pace to quicken. James loved the feel of her buds growing stiff in his palms. She felt extremely amazing and he could not wait to be inside of her. But of course, that meant that he had to weaken her before he could roll her over and achieve domination. But when her fingers reached the waistband of his boxers, he knew that she would continue with her top position whether he liked it or not.

Boxers now out of the way, Holly J retrieved a condom from his pocket, pumping his shaft with an impish smile. The D.C native watched her slowly place the latex on him, her smile growing as his hips jumped from the contact. James could only watch with impatience as she lined her center with his length and slow lower herself onto him. His mind went hazy for a moment as she resumed their earlier make-out session. God how he loved how it felt to be inside of her, mainly because no one but him has ever done so. She began her slow teasing pace, smiling a bit at James's urgency. He bucked up into her, only for her nails to dig into his arms.

"Stop that." she whispered playfully in his ear.

"You're going to pay for this." he told her, gaining a giggle.

"Do your worst." James loved this about her. She had nearly singlehandedly taught him self restraint and following orders through this game.

James felt her tongue trace his neck, then chest, circling a nipple, before the top of his abs. She then sat up, still riding him in an agonizingly slow pace.

"I love how you feel." she admitted through pure lust.

James brought his hands up to her breasts and gave them a squeeze. She bit her lips to stop herself from moaning out loudly, a sight that only spurred him on more. She brought her face towards him and gave him a breathtaking kiss.

Perfect, he thought. He rolled them over, now being the one to set the pace. Her eyes showed her excitement as James began to thrust into her at a faster pace. Her nails dragged down his back and made its way to his ass where she groped him tightly.

"Go. Harder." she said before he complied with her orders.

"Fuck…" James said before kissing the crook of her neck.

He was close and he knew she was by the sounds she was making. He moved and kissed her, loving how she responded with so much enthusiasm. Nothing could make this feeling any better… Except her rolling them over again. James thought about putting her back on the bottom and pinning her legs against her, but she gave his bottom lip another bite as if to reprimand him for the thought. A coppery taste filled his mouth as she sat back and continued to bounce atop of him rapidly, her own climax building by the seconds. James thrust up into her with the same speed before she let out a lustful scream. James thrust into her a few more times before finishing himself.

Panting, Holly J fell atop of James.

"Pinned you…" she managed to say as she attempted to catch her breath.

James only chuckled as he rubbed her back, causing her to moan in appreciation.

"You cheated." he said, his voice a bit hoarse.

The two shared a laugh as James continued to rub her back. Holly J rose, disconnecting the two, before resting on James. He continued to rub her back as he felt her relax atop of him. This felt almost perfect to him, with the exception of the slight stinging from his lip.

"We should take a shower." Holly J said.

James smiled before kissing his girlfriend.

"My thoughts exactly love." James said before closing his eyes. "But first, I have a nap to catch."

"Not a bad idea." Holly J said as he began to rub her back again. The two lied in complete silence for all of five minutes before James's cell phone rang. "Your friends are calling."

James groaned. "Why do I let you talk me into these things?" Holly J giggled as she snuggled more into him, obviously not wanting to leave. "Maybe if I ignore them, they'll go away."

The ringing stopped before starting again.

"Think again." Holly J said. "Come on. Let's shower and then meet up with your friends."

"Do we have to?" Holly J laughed at the statement.

"Of course we do or else they'll worry and come here and I don't want them here." Holly J said. "Bad enough Princess Fiona is back. I'd hate to see her all over you, _again_."

James did not respond, just rubbing her back gently as he always did when they were just lying about until she rose for the bathroom. His grey eyes gave her a thorough scanning, loving every grove and curve he saw. His eyes then moved from her thighs up to her face, seeing her lips curled in a satisfying smile. Holly J would never admit it, but she loved attention.

"Take a shower and you'll see more." she said.

James smiled sitting up. "Let's go love."

* * *

><p>Minutes later, Holly J walked alongside James as he followed Declan and Jane to the chosen restaurant nearby.<p>

"Fi and Charlie are already there." Declan explained. "They took the tram."

"Something tells me you don't really approve of them mate. And it could be my imagination." James stated.

Declan sighed. "I'm happy that Fiona's happy, I really am. But I know that in the end, Charlie can't give Fiona what Fiona really wants."

"That's not right Declan." Jane said. "They can get married in some parts of the states and have a family through adoption or a donor."

"I know. But I also know that there's just something wrong there and it's not that she's dating a girl. It's something… I don't know." James caught Declan's eyes drift towards him.

"Your sister with another girl? Kind of hot mate." James said before Holly J elbowed him.

"Pervert." she muttered.

"Well," Declan stated. "I know when Fiona's not completely happy and she's not to me. That's why she asked to come on this trip to find whatever it was she was missing. Problem is, neither of us knows what's missing in her and Charlie's relationship."

"I wish I could help but I can't." Declan gave a small snort.

"You didn't even try yet." The male Coyne said.

James shrugged. "I tried a long time ago and it didn't work. You yourself told me to get over her, and I have. Anya helped me do that and Holly J just finished what she started." James paused. "Not to mention that my younger sister is completely annoying _and_ I have a son on the way."

"Excuses, excuses." Declan stated as they neared the restaurant, Fiona and Charlie waiting outside.

"It's about time. What were you four doing?" James noticed that Jane and Declan had the same shameful glances as he and Holly J. Fiona seemed to have noticed this and sighed. "You two are still the same. Always thinking with the wrong head."

"Look who's talking." Declan said. "From the disturbing images I have of you and Jai-"

"How about we get lunch?" James interrupted.

"Good idea." Holly J stated.

James gave Declan a simple look to tell him to drop whatever James and Fiona had in the past whilst Holly J was around. Declan shrugged it off, and the six entered the restaurant. After getting a table to fit the six of them (Holly J, James, and Charlie sitting across Jane, Declan, and Fiona respectively) they all looked at the menus.

"What to get…?" Holly J whispered.

James was going to respond before he felt a foot rub against his leg. He kept his composure, not jumping at the sudden intrusion, and glanced across the table. He caught Fiona submerging a giggle behind her hand before the foot on his leg was removed.

"Embarrassing…" Fiona said.

Declan frowned. "What is?"

"Nothing." James stared at Fiona, who was seconds away from bursting with laughter.

It then dawned on James what Fiona was attempting. She was obviously looking for Charlie's legs, who sat beside James. Instead, she found his.

"So," Fiona said looking at James. "Just how did you and Holly J began dating? This will be the second girl you've dated who is the younger sister of a friend, you know."

James smiled. "Well… It's kind of a funny story actually."

"Heather locked us in a closet." Holly J stated. Fiona looked at James, who just nodded. "It was like playing Seven Minutes just with very little space and longer time."

"They had been 'studying' with each other for a while though." Jane added.

"We were studying." Holly J defended. She hated it when people got the wrong idea about her or her relationship with James.

"Yeah…" Declan stated. "Anyway, they act more like…" Declan paused. "Never mind. Forget I said anything."

James glared at Declan. This was the _second time_ in the past _ten minutes_ that he had brought up a part of the past that James did not appreciate. He was going to voice his annoyance when Fiona continued.

"So what happened afterwards?" she questioned, now more towards Holly J than James.

Holly J shrugged. "We talked it out until Heather unlocked us, went on a date, and here we are."

"The bartender and the waitress. My next play title." Declan said.

"You _are_ a bartender now, huh?" James gave Fiona a nod. "Well, I guess that's all the more reasons why we couldn't have lasted. A recovering alcoholic does _not_ make a perfect housewife for a bartender."

"True." James said, though he was mentally kicking Laura for even putting the thought in Fiona's head.

"What about you and Charlie?" Jane asked.

"She was my inspiration." Fiona stated. James and Declan frowned at this. "She was the figure model in my art class. Then we started talking and now here we are. In Hawaii together." James and Declan exchanged glances before Fiona continued. "Which reminds me! Jaime, I have some great designs you have got to see!"

James groaned. "I figured since your girlfriend was here you'd use her instead of me bird."

"Did I use Bobby instead of you?" James watched Declan smirk. Declan never got dragged to look at his sister's designs. Only James. "Seriously Jaime, why are you trying to mess up tradition?"

Declan shrugged. "It must have something to do with a win for the Nationals. That was _very_ untraditional."

James let the comment go. His and Declan's loyalty to their respective hometowns would never die so long as New York City and Washington D.C existed.

Approximately twenty minutes later, the group had ordered and was fed, now just talking to see what had happened in their lives. Or to be more precise, Declan, James, and Fiona talked to catch up while their respective girlfriends just listened.

"I bet she does…" James muttered.

Fiona rolled her eyes. "James, my mom does not hate you. Well, not anymore."

"I think she does." James said.

Declan nodded. "She probably does." Declan then looked at Charlie. "What about you? Did you get in our parents' good graces?"

"No." Fiona answered. "They asked her for her life story just about. I felt so embarrassed."

James felt his cell phone vibrated. He looked at the screen, feeling Holly J's eyes on his phone as well. She never answered like Fiona did, but she always looked to see who it was. If it was someone she did not know or wondered why they were calling, she would question.

"I have to take this." James said rising. He answered his call. "Hey."

"Hey babe." Despite her dating another guy, Manny Santos would always call him "babe" for whatever the reason. "How's Hawaii?"

James stepped out of the restaurant before answering.

"Hell, mate. Fiona's here." James answered.

"Really? How's Holly J taking it?" questioned Manny.

James sighed. "Better than I expected. Lord knows I don't know what she packed in her bags so I'll have to keep an eye open for that." Manny laughed a bit. "So, what're you doing?"

"Sitting here. Bored to death." Manny said. "Craig went into the studio earlier and I haven't spoken to Emma. I think she and Jay went house shopping again."

"Oh." James said.

One of the other things that happened during the Vegas trip was Emma and Jay's marriage. After the two returned, they argued their way into having sex with one another and eventually figured that it was worth a shot. Now the married couple acted like one in almost every aspect.

"So… The ex who you are so in love with is there and your current hasn't gone completely cuckoo bananas about it yet. So what are you going to do?" Manny asked.

James shrugged a little. "I wish I knew. Bad enough I have HJ down here, but Fiona's brought Charlie as well."

"Ah. The other guy." James only smirked.

"The other _girl_." James heard Manny gasp.

"She's a lesbian? No way!"

"My thoughts exactly, but apparently so." James said. "It's kind of hard to deny it though. They do look like they're really into each other so…"

Manny scoffed. "Since when do _you_ give up? I say go for it." James heard what sounded like a bag of some sort being opened. He figured she was snacking on some crackers or chips again. "Besides, I'd rather have the posh Fiona Coyne as my son's stepmom than the arrogant Holly J Sinclair."

"I don't get a say in this?" James asked with a smile.

"Very little so make it count." James laughed at her response. It was a shame that he and Manny could not have made something work. Oh well. He should be glad about what he has.

"Look, I have to get back to the table before they start revealing embarrassing stories about me." he told her. "I'll call you later on today, alright?"

"You do know it's already four in Toronto right?" Manny said, reminding James of the different time zones. "So how about _I'll _call you when _I'm_ headed off to bed. You should be up and hopefully not doing anything with Holly J… Or Fiona… Or Fiona and her girlfriend."

"Funny." James said. "Bye love."

"Bye babe." she said before hanging up.

James put his phone in his pocket and made his way back to the table. He and Manny's relationship was an odd one to talk about. There was clearly some physical _and_ emotional attraction there, but they refused to date. Mainly because James knew that Manny was near in love with Craig and she knew how he once felt for Fiona. However, when it was just the two of them, they would cuddle (on her request) and talk about nearly anything.

They were the _opposite_ of him and Emma. Emma had become something akin to the sibling he never had, always checking in on him and helping whenever possible. She was there for him during the time he was still moping over Fiona's departure and gave him advice when needed the most. Plus, like any other older sister, she had a knack for being annoying at the most inconvenient time. But, he loved Emma's company through and through. Even if she now spoke of her husband almost every four or five sentences.

Returning to the table, James sat in his seat.

"Everything alright?" Holly J asked.

James nodded. "Perfect. She's just a bit bored, that's all."

"That's Manny for you…" Holly J said. "Jane and I are going to go on a little shopping spree. You don't mind, do you?"

"Depends on what you bring back." James replied with a coy smile.

"That goes for me too." Declan stated.

Charlie looked at Fiona. "Ready to go see the island?" Fiona nodded. "Great. I'm sure you can find tons of inspiration here."

Fiona then looked at James. "What are you going to do?"

"Sleep." James answered. "Without a certain someone in my room to keep me awake, I can finally take that nap."

Charlie gave James and Holly J a frown.

"You two wouldn't be on the fifth floor would you?" Both James and Holly J nodded. Charlie just smiled as she looked at Fiona. "Now we know who's across the hall from us."

"What?" Holly J asked.

"We heard you." Fiona simply stated. "And before you deny it, your lip is so bruised."

James hand went to his bottom lip where Holly J had bit him earlier before looking at Holly J. It was appealing to see her, one of the Queen Bees on campus, blushing.

"Told you to get a Royal Suite like me…" Declan muttered loud enough for James to hear.

"Well, I don't have to show off like you." James responded. "Plus, everyone knows that between Holly J and Jane, Jane's twice as loud. The privacy was well needed."

"Are we really going to have this conversation here?" Jane asked, looking between Declan and James.

James raised a brow. Declan would never back down from a challenge unless Jane put her foot down. He was curious to know what his friend was going to say.

"We'll see." Declan stated.

"Let's not." Holly J said. "Jane, are you ready? I really don't want to be around while they decide which one of us screams the loudest."

"Me neither." Jane said rising with her friend. "I'll see you later."

Declan gave her a nod as Holly J gave James a kiss.

"Drop the conversation." she said firmly before walking away with Jane.

"Holly J is." Declan said.

James only laughed. Declan had to get the last word, whether or not he was wrong.

"Can we change the topic? Please?" James and Declan looked at Fiona before nodding. "Great. So, how about I tell you about my wonderful friends in New York? I'm sure you'll like to hear how I befriended a pair that works for the circus."

"This I have to hear." Declan stated.

As Fiona began, James only smiled at how excited she sounded. It was kind of like how she used to be, sans the fact that she was currently dating another woman. He had no real problem with her being lesbian, more like having a problem that she was dating someone else period. He had felt this kind of anger and jealousy before when Bobby was gloating about how he had taken Fiona's virginity.

Still, it was good to have his bird back.


	3. Chapter 3

**_Chapter 3: The Forget-Me-Not Bird_**

James opened his eyes to see the evening skies in Hawaii. He wondered how long he had been out before sitting up and stretching.

"HJ?" he called, no answer. She must be out with Jane.

Sighing, he rose and put on some flip-flops. Moving out of the bedroom, he realized that there were a few bags in the living room and moved towards them. However, a note on the table caught his attention. He read it before smirking.

_ Be back later. Don't peak. – Holly J_

James would have looked anyway but chose against it. He would let his imagination run for a while. Meanwhile, James took his key and left the suite. He had to get some fresh air.

"Oh, Jaime." James froze as he looked to see Fiona exited her room as well. "Um, where were you headed?"

James shrugged. "Just walking around. You?"

"Charlie's asleep and I needed to get out for a while. I can't just stay in one place." James nodded. "Dex said he would meet me downstairs. Did you want to come with us?"

"Sure." James said, patting his pocket to make sure his cell phone was there.

The two began to walk for the elevator before Fiona spoke.

"So… Holly J, huh?" James looked at her.

"Yeah… That's not a problem, is it?" James asked.

Fiona scoffed. "I hate her." James frowned. "Okay, I'll admit that she's not as bitchy as she was earlier this year, but still. I know that person is in her somewhere."

"She's different bird. Give her a chance." James said. "Besides, you don't hear me going on a rant about you and Charlie."

"I don't need you to say it. I _know_ you hate it." Fiona said. James only gave a shrug. She was right to a degree. "I hate that Declan dragged me down here."

James frowned. "He said that you wanted to come."

"I did. He said that there was some sort of deal and he had a spare room. He said to bring a date and Hawaii. I think all I paid attention to was Hawaii." James laughed at that. "When he said to meet up in Toronto because you were going too, I had already bought the plane tickets and packed for the trip. I didn't know that you were bringing a girlfriend, let alone Holly J Sinclair."

"Hmm… Seems as if Declan has been keeping a lot of secrets from us then because I had no clue that you were coming, let alone bringing Charlie." James responded. "I think Declan set us up bird."

"Me too…" Fiona said quietly as James pressed the button for the elevator. "I missed you…"

James met her eyes with his.

"I've missed you too." he answered before the doors opened.

"Where are you two going?" James and Fiona met Holly J's gaze as she stepped off of the elevator, a shopping bag in each hand.

"To meet up with Declan." James answered. "I got your note by the way. I'm leaving not to peak."

Holly J smiled. "Good boy." Holly J then looked at Fiona. "Jane and I were going to the spa tomorrow. Did you want to come with us?"

Fiona blinked in surprise before looking at James. He gave her a small smile and lifted a brow before Fiona addressed Holly J.

"Sure." Fiona answered.

"Well," Holly J said walking past them. "I'll see you then." She then looked at James. "Be back soon so you can see what I got."

James smiled. "I wouldn't miss it for the world love."

James and Fiona stepped on the elevator, his eyes never moving away from his girlfriend's retreating body until the doors closed. He then looked at Fiona, who had just pressed the button for the lobby.

"I told you she's changed." he told her.

"So I see." Fiona said. "So… She sleeps on my side, huh?" James smirked. "What?"

"I told you that she hasn't really moved in." James answered. "When she sleeps there, no. She sleeps on my side. But normally she's at her dorm with Anya like before you left."

"…I sleep on your side too." Fiona said.

James shrugged. "It's nothing I worry about bird. You fall asleep on whatever side of the bed you want." The doors to the elevator opened and the two stepped off. "Besides, we're happy, right?"

"I guess you're right." Fiona said before looking around. "Now where's my brother?"

James shrugged. "Don't know. Call him."

Fiona did just that, holding a small conversation with the missing Coyne before hanging up with an annoyed sigh.

"Where is he?" Fiona just looked at James.

"Jane called him back to the room for some reason. So it's just us, again." Fiona said. "So, where to?"

"I just wanted to walk around." James said leaving the building, Fiona at his side. "Your mom must've been happy when you began dating Sebastian, huh?"

Fiona pursed her lips. "A bit too much. He was a complete _bore_. I would rather hold a civil conversation with Holly J than to listen to him talk on and on about nothing important. And he had _absolutely no_ sex drive. That's why I'm forever off of men."

"Glad to know it wasn't me." James said with a smile, the two now walking the path that stretched throughout the resort.

"I could never hate men because of you." Fiona stated. "That wouldn't make much sense at all." James swallowed silently. Something felt amiss here. "So Holly J met your dad?"

"The whole family." Fiona's eyes went wide in shock at the statement. "Christmas."

"Oh. So you met your sister then? How was she?" Fiona questioned.

"Hyper." James said, drawing a giggle from Fiona. "Worst of all, she's a Giants' fan. A New York Giants' fan."

Fiona frowned. "I thought you liked the Ravens?"

James nodded. "I do. But I still cheer for the Redskins whenever they play the Giants. It's a D.C thing."

"I bet." Fiona said.

"Fi," he said. "I want you to know that this is as awkward for me as it is you. To be honest, I always thought that I'd just randomly run into you in a grocery store somewhere."

Fiona sighed. "Since it's just the two of us, I guess I can tell you how I felt." James glimpsed at the brunette beside him. "I wanted to call you and tell you how sorry I was… But my parents took my phone away. They didn't give it back to me until I was swamped with work at NYU. I…" Fiona paused before smiling. "I actually cried getting your messages."

"Sorry about that." James said with a grin, though he knew that this was a solemn moment.

"I didn't know what to think after you stop calling. I figured you'd gotten together with Manny, not Holly J." Fiona stated.

"I dated Anya first." Fiona gasped at the revelation. "Me and Holly J just grew close because she was there. A lot. Plus Anya was still into Sav. But I didn't just date right off of the bat. It took your brother, Emma, Manny, Anya, Jay, Sean, Heather, Peter, and Holly J for me to try again."

"Sounds… Sounds painful." Fiona said as she looked around. "Sand. Water. People."

"What are you doing?" James questioned.

"I learned that I only drink when I relive bad experiences and I'm reliving one right now. So they taught me this trick to describe my surroundings to get my mind off of it." Fiona explained.

"We can talk about something else." James suggested.

Fiona nodded. "Right, something other than falling in love and then being pulled apart."

James put his hands in the pockets of his khaki shorts. He knew what she was feeling, he felt it too.

"Answer me this," Fiona said, gaining James's attention. "Do you love her? I see how you look at her but I know you. You have a problem saying 'I love you' to just anyone."

James sighed. "It's complicated. We don't say things like that but I guess it's apparent to everyone else, her mom especially." Fiona nodded. "How about you? You love Charlie?"

"I… Same. We don't say it, but people assume it." Fiona answered.

"Are they wrong to assume it?" James asked.

"So Manny's pregnant?" Fiona questioned spontaneously.

James walked in silence for a moment. She changed the subject pretty quickly.

"Yep. She and Liberty and Tinsley. All thanks to Las Vegas." James caught Fiona's eyes widening after hearing that Tinsley was pregnant. "Bobby's child. A girl I think."

"Oh." Fiona said. "Wow. Kind of sucks that the two guys I went to Vegas with got a girl pregnant and neither were me."

James chuckled. "Yeah, well, Manny and I haven't slept together since then. She's still with Craig. And Bobby transferred to Smithdale, so I don't see him like I want to." Fiona frowned. "Oh, I will finish our 'talk' about how he used to hit you. Suffice to say that I can't do it at The Break Room or I'll lose my job."

Fiona smiled. "You don't have to beat him for me Jaime."

"Then I'll do it until I feel better." James responded. "Either way, he's got it coming, no questions asked."

"Thanks." Fiona nearly whispered.

The two walked in silence until they came up on a couple getting married in the sunset. They watched the event with similar thoughts as the man kissed his bride, the small group around them clapping and praising them.

"How romantic." Fiona said.

James only nodded before the two continued their walk.

"How're your parents?" James asked, though he knew some bits and pieces of it through Declan.

Fiona sighed. "Legally separated. I also learned that I might have a younger sister out there." James hummed in thought. Declan did not mention that. "So my life has been crap since I've left and I'm just trying to make the best out of it."

"Well, the mother of my child and my current girlfriend are not the best of friends, plus whenever I want to do something, I have to check in with _three_ pairs of parents. Mine, Holly J's, _and_ Manny's. And because Manny is like a daughter to Emma's mom, sometimes her and Mr. Simpson too."

"The principal at Degrassi?" James nodded. "Wow… That is bad." James shrugged. "How're the Torres brothers?"

"Well, Adam's dating Clare and Drew's dating Bianca." James explained. "I've talked to their mom and Adam's going through therapy to prepare his operation after his graduation next year. Drew's got a scholarship to play for Bardell. Quarterback."

"Wow… I bet you're glad that you don't have to talk to them anymore." Fiona said.

"Actually, I talk to Adam every other day." James replied. "He still gets bashed about the whole FTM thing so whenever he can't deal with it, he comes by our place."

"That's good." Fiona said.

James nodded, wondering if she caught the slip. Technically, Fiona didn't live with him anymore and _their_ place was actually _his_ place now. If she did, she ignored it and kept walking.

"After hearing you two earlier," Fiona said. "I'm guessing sex is great."

James looked at her smiling face.

"If I tell you," James said. "You're going to have to tell me about you and Charlie." Fiona rolled her eyes. "Oh come on. You're asking about _my_ sex life. I'm just asking for the same."

"You're such a pervert." she said shoving him slightly.

James grinned. "Fair is fair bird."

"You want to know about our sex life? We have sex. There." Fiona said.

"Fine. Don't tell me. I can imagine it then." James told her. "Remember bird, I know how you can be."

Fiona gave him a sly smile. "Oh, I've learned a thing or two since we were last together. A friend of mine works at a shop that sells nothing but sex toys and DVDs. How do you think I learned with Charlie?"

"I don't know." James said.

"And not all of them were pleasuring a woman." Fiona announced.

James looked at his friend beside him before seeing those flames in her eyes again. Those flames that once told him when she was in the mood to just take him then and there with no questions asked.

"This place is beautiful." Fiona said looking at the sunset.

"Yeah, it is." James said.

Fiona sighed. "Don't you wish you could just stay here and see this every night?" James nodded. "Too bad we can't…"

James had no clue on what she meant by "we can't" but decided not to dwell on it. In fact, he figured that now would be the best time to go back to Holly J or else.

"Um… I'm going to go check back in with Holly J, okay? Will you be alright by yourself?" James slapped himself mentally for the question. Of course she would not be okay by herself. She _never_ liked being by herself.

"Did I say something wrong because if I did then I'm sorry." she said.

James shook his head. "No. It was nothing you said. I just…" James paused. He literally had no excuse as to why he wanted to leave Fiona other than the truth. "It's not you bird."

Fiona stepped in front of him and looked at him.

"Do you still love me James?" James felt his throat dry up again. Truthfully, he did. Months of not seeing her somehow made the love grow.

"Fi…"

"Jaime, I have to know. It's been bothering me all plane ride here." Fiona said. "Just tell me."

"I can't." James said.

"Why? No one is here but you and me." Fiona said stepping closer to him. "Tell me James. Do you still love me?"

"…" James only took in a deep breath. "Why do you want to know?" Now it was Fiona that was quiet. "Fiona, you can't be in love with me. You're-"

"Bisexual." Fiona announced. "And for some inexplicable reason, yes, I still do love you."

Heart beating faster than it should have, James just stared at Fiona quietly. This was not supposed to be happening. He was supposed to be moving on with Holly J.

So why was he moving towards Fiona?

Why was she moving towards him?

Why were they kissing?

James quickly pulled away. "I'm sorry bird, but I can't do this. Not to Holly J."

Irony. This had been his reason for not sleeping with Holly J in Las Vegas, because he could not cheat on Fiona.

"You still love me, don't you?" Fiona asked. James only nodded and she stepped away. "That's all I wanted to know."

"I'm going to go." James said. James saw the sorrow in her eyes and cringed inwardly. "Hey… How about you and Charlie go out to dinner with HJ and me?"

Fiona seemed to like the idea, smiling a bit.

"Sure." Fiona said as James began to back away. "I'll call."

James nodded as he walked away. Inside, he had a mixture of emotions. He was happy to know that she still loved him, angry that she admitted it now, frustrated at his complicated relationship with Holly J, and so on. He looked over his shoulder to see Fiona standing in the same spot, he eyes looking out towards the ocean. She looked so calm and yet so troubled at the same time.

His view was cut off but a text message.

_**-Come back to the room.-**_ _H. Sinclair_

James sighed heavily. Just when life seemed to be getting easier, this had to happen. Oh well. He has been in a situation similar to this before. He knew how to get out of it.

* * *

><p>James opened the door to the suite and saw that the room was dimly lit and smelled like vanilla. Looking around, he found Holly J standing in a white blouse and black shorts, an assortment of food on the table in the kitchen.<p>

"You cooked?" James questioned moving towards the dining area. "Wow Holly J, I'm shocked at this."

Holly J only smiled. What little people knew about the couple was their limited time spent together in private. Due to their classes, programs and athletic clubs, respective jobs, and other things, James and Holly J did not get to go on the dates that they wanted to. So every moment that they got was cherished, even those that were spent watching TV.

"I wanted this to be special." Holly J said as she and James sat at the table.

"You succeeded love." James replied. "I guess this is a bad time to tell you that Fi actually wanted to us to join them for dinner, huh?"

Holly J nodded. "Yes. This is a _very_ bad time." James only smiled. "But… If you want them to…"

"No. Let's eat alone. I'll text her the news." Holly J frowned.

"You know how I hate it when people send news over text messages. It's wrong. So call her. And Manny while you're at it." Holly J said. "The food will be alright, I promise."

James sighed as he took is cell phone out of his pocket. He noticed that his battery was getting low, so he decided to call Manny first. If his phone died, he could always go across the hall and tell Fiona face-to-face about the change of plans.

"James Nichols, this had better be important. I was nearly sleep with this kicking monster you call a son." Manny said.

"I just wanted to check in for the night. Normally it would be you calling me to tell me how bad you can't sleep." James said.

"Well not tonight. I feel comfortable, I'm sure he's asleep, and Craig was wiped out from earlier." Manny told him. "Oh! Emma says she's found a nice little house in her budget. She would've called, but being the midwife for me _and_ Liberty is keeping her busy. Well, busier than usual."

James hummed in thought. "Hmm… I bet."

Manny sighed. "I'm glad that she and Sean have talked things out. The last thing I need is for her to drink out of guilt knowing that I can't." James laughed at that. She sounded so saddened by her lack of partying. "Shut up. It's your fault that I'm like this."

"Well, if you think about it, it was kind of your fault mate." James said. "You asked for one last time, remember?"

"Whatever Jaime." James heard her give a small giggle. "Your mom called by the way and I told her about who's down there with you."

James frowned. "And what did she say?"

"She said that you're probably caught between a rock and a hard place and I should annoy you until you fly back. Not everyone gets a vacation to Hawaii." James shook his head. His mother would say something like that. "But, seriously, how are you holding up with your bitchy girlfriend and high-class ex?"

"We're good." James said. "Um, sorry to call and hang up, but my battery's dying."

"Good… I'm almost asleep anyway…" Manny said. "Talk to you later. Oh, and bring me back a souvenir. And not like the Vegas souvenir."

James laughed. "Sure thing Manny. Bye."

"Bye." Manny said before the two ended their call.

"One down, one to go." Holly J said as James dialed Fiona's number. It felt almost foreign to him, and he was shocked that he still knew it by heart.

"Hey." Fiona answered.

"Hey bird, um, I'm going to have to put a rain check on the dinner thing." James said.

"Oh, no problem. I'm up here annoying Declan anyway." James figured that she was more hurt than she sounded. "See you in the morning Jaime!"

"Yeah… Bye." James said.

"Bye." she said hanging up.

James hung up and sat his phone on the table. Holly J took it and turned it off before doing the same thing with her phone. He raised an eyebrow at her as she smiled.

"Like I said, I want this to be special. No interruptions." James nodded a bit. He understood what she was thinking. "Unfortunately I couldn't get a bottle of champagne or anything like, so I got us some juice. All the taste without the alcohol effect."

James smiled. "That's perfect love. I've been around too much alcohol as it is."

Holly J smiled as the two began fixing their plate of the seafood and pasta that Holly J had prepared for them.

There was a moment during the dinner that James regretted almost everything he had done. He regretted trying to date Manny, he regretted getting drunk with Fiona, he regretted aiding Blue in his attempt to date Holly J, and then some. He regretted the fact that he had three great women in his life (Manny, Holly J, and now Fiona) who all have stuck by his side whenever he was in need.

The worst part about it was, he has done nothing but made their lives more complicated. Manny was with Marco, in a sense, when James met her and now she was carrying his child while with another guy. Fiona was with Bobby when James met her. And Blue, a friend who James has not really spoken to since dating Holly J, was clearly into James's current girlfriend before James and Anya split. The more James thought about it, the sicker he felt about it.

"Are you alright?" Holly J asked, sipping the grape juice in her glass. James nodded, causing her brows to furrow. "I know that look. What are you thinking about? You're in your 'I have a case that I can't figure out' mode."

James smiled. "Is that what you call that look?"

"That or your writer's block look. But this is clearly the lawyer look." she told him.

James sighed. "I'm just thinking about the past."

"Hmm… Something tells me that Fiona Coyne is somewhere in that." James saw that Holly J had no malice in her voice or anger on her face. More like comprehension of what he was thinking. "You two must've talked a lot."

"Finishing catching up from lunch." Holly J nodded a bit. "You seem quiet."

Holly J exhaled. "Jaime… This is the woman that you once loved, and probably still do. You know that my competitive side won't just sit by and hope that everything goes my way. I have to make it my way."

"I'm not leaving you love." James said. Holly J seemed to like the response and gave him a smile. "She asked about our sex life…"

James saw Holly J almost choke on whatever it was in her mouth, a response he was going for. Again, she was so hush about their sex life, giving Anya the bare minimal information. Then again, with their busy schedule, it wasn't like they were Peter and Victoria (who got together after Mia found the two one day) or any other couple that saw each other almost every second of the day.

"What did you say?" James's smile only grew. He loved seeing one of the most confident (he would never call her arrogant) girls so shy and timid.

"I said we had it." James told her. "I didn't want her to feel… Second-best to you."

"I bet." Holly J said before leaning back in her chair. "Can I ask you something? It's really nothing you have to worry about, just out of curiosity."

"Shoot." James noticed how she inhaled slightly and then exhaled slowly.

"Valentine's Day, Jane told Declan that she loved him and then they had sex." James frowned. This sounded like an everyday thing. "The next morning, he still hadn't replied to her and so now she's wondering if he really does or doesn't. She told me earlier today that he had avoided the conversation when they got to their suite altogether."

"Sounds like Declan to me mate." James said.

"It got me questioning… What do you love about me?" James had a feeling that this was where the conversation was going and he would have to blame Fiona for this later on. Somehow, he figured if Fiona had not have brought this up while they were walking, Holly J wouldn't have brought it up at dinner.

"I love a lot about you." James answered, a fluttering feeling building inside of you. "Looks, personality. There's not much I _don't_ love about you."

"I was just wondering." she said as she rose. "I'm going to clean this up."

James nodded. Holly J had an entirely different glow at this moment and he just wanted to bask in it. It was probably because this had to be the closest he has ever come to just outright saying he loved her since they began dating. Or it could be because he was able to say things that Declan could not to Jane and she felt that much more superior to her friend. All in all, she just seemed to glow and he liked- no _loved-_ that about her.

Rising from his seat, James grabbed both of their cell phones.

"I'm going to put these on the charger." he told Holly J, who only nodded in response.

Moving towards the bedroom, James smiled a bit. If felt good to make someone feel good about themselves, he admits. Being a bartender, he was used to seeing a completely depressed guy or girl rambling about some breakup. That was depressing, even for a guy who hardly cared about those sorts of things. He normally gave them whatever drink they ordered and watched the alcohol do its magic. But giving people helpful advice, like he did with Adam, and making them happy in their soberest of minds felt great.

Back to his task, James plugged his phone onto the charger before moving to do Holly J's. That is, until he saw that she had a text from Jane.

-_**Still won't say it. Help.-**_

James shook his head before putting his girlfriend's phone on the charger.

"Hey, there's a really good movie on and-" James did not let Holly J finish her sentence, scooping her up bridal style and lying her gently in the bed. "Well, okay. What's this about?"

"I love you Holly J. I want you to know that." he told her, gaining a shocked face.

"I love you too." she responded, though her voice told him how surprised she was to hear him say that.

He then kissed her gently, she responding ever so tenderly, yet passionate. It felt almost like their first time together when James had promised to be as gentle as he could with her since she was a virgin at the time. It was probably one of the more memorable times he could think of.

"Jaime, make love to me." she said quietly.

James nodded as he raised her shirt to reveal her stomach. While he gave her light kisses on her flat stomach, he was thrown back in time to their first time. This was how it all started. The little butterfly kisses on her stomach, the removal of her shirt, the removal of his shirt, removal of their respective pants and underwear, and then a small nod from Holly J that gave James the okay to penetrate her.

And this time was no different. As he pulled her off her laced panties, he locked eyes with hers, asking for permission to continue. She only smile and nodded, answering the unasked question. He would not go completely wild like a part of him was thinking, no, he wanted to cherish this moment. And with each stroke and each kiss, he thought about how perfect this moment was. She was intoxicating and he loved that about her. It was like the more he was away from her, the more he craved her. And truthfully, before today, it had been almost three weeks of her constant tortuous teasing to get him to reveal their secret getaway plans. So for the time being, he was going to have her any and everyway possible.

"I love you." James barely heard her, but he did nonetheless.

"I love you too." he responded before kissing her.

As they continued, he kept repeating one thing in his head over and over. Fiona was the past. If he could get himself to believe that, then maybe there was a bright future with him and Holly J. And that was something he was actually praying for at the moment.


	4. Chapter 4

**_Chapter 4: Currents and Waves_**

There were many things that James liked about Hawaii, but none of it could compare to what he was currently doing; Surfing. He loved to surf ever since his father and uncle taught him at ten. It was thrilling, yet relaxing all at the same time. Plus, at the current moment, it was one thing that Declan could not do that he could.

Chalk another one up for D.C.

At the distance he was currently at, James could hardly see Holly J on shore with Fiona and Charlie, Declan actually swimming in the cool ocean waters with Jane. In fact, the only way he knew where they were was because of the limited people on the beach. It was no secret that surfers all around the world had their on cult-like culture and certain places, like this beach, was only allowed to those who surfed. Thankfully James _did_ know how to surf or else they would be at one of the more crowded places on the island.

"Hey, newbie," James looked at the blonde woman known as Leila. She had soft brown eyes and quite the curvy body. "Race you to the shore?"

Earlier, Holly J suspected of Leila having a crush on James. Now, she _and_ Fiona thought the same thing.

"Sure mate." James said.

"Loser buys dinner." she told him with a smile.

"Uh, I can't. My girlfriend would be quite jealous." Leila seemed to be okay with the response before smirking.

"Who says that she has to know?"

By now, James knew what he could be getting himself into and chose to focus on the water. The next wave should bring him close enough to the shore to regroup with his friends momentarily before going back out to the waves. Hopefully Leila would get the picture that if Holly J was not going to let him go _anywhere_ with her. And that's only if she got past Fiona first.

"I'll just ride this one alone." James told her, spotting the oncoming wave.

James prepared himself for the wave. It was nothing _too_ big, but something he knew to be slightly cautious of. If Leila was the jealous type, she would probably attempt to drop in on him, a big pet peeve to surfers worldwide. And if that happened… Well, the repercussions would not end well for anyone.

And she did.

James growled he glared at the back of Leila. He was not one to bail on a wave, so he would ride it out using every technique he knew to keep from wiping out. James smirked at the thought of knocking Leila off, but realized that two wrongs don't make a right. In the real world, maybe, in the surfing world, never.

Fortunately, and unfortunately, both surfers rode the wave without any accidents. Still, when they reached the shore, James was not happy at all.

"What the hell was that?" he asked the blonde.

"Dude, calm down okay? I knew what I was doing." James's saw her brown eyes leave his, glancing at someone coming up behind him. "Besides, I think your shubie girlfriend is coming."

"Don't call her that mate." James said turning around to look at Holly J nearing him. "Something wrong?"

"Well," she began. "Not that watching you go on and on is boring or anything," James smiled. "But we want to go rent some jet skis and have some fun ourselves."

James shrugged. "Sure, let's go."

With surfboard securely tucked under his arm, Holly J took his free hand and laced it with hers. James smiled at this, knowing exactly what the strawberry blonde was doing. She was flaunting what she had. And in the white bikini she wore and James's hand in hers, she was flaunting quite a bit.

"Love, I really think that's not necessary. She gets the point." James said.

Holly J looked up at him with a smile.

"Just incase she doesn't." James chuckled with his girlfriend as they made their way to the others.

"I always thought you were lying. You can actually surf." Fiona stated.

"Wasn't really surfing, just riding the waves." James said. "So, you guys wanted to rent some jet skis for a while. What brought that up?"

Fiona thumbed towards Jane. "She and Holly J has adopted your and Declan's rivalry. They say that they could run laps around each other."

"Please, you were the one who brought it up in the first place." Holly J said before looking at James. "So come on. Let's show them who owns the Pacific."

"You're on." Fiona stated.

James only stared at Declan, who had a defeated look on his face. Since the girls' spa yesterday, Fiona, and Holly J have become somewhat friends, Jane being the mediator. As close as friends as Holly J and Fiona would allow, that is. This was bittersweet news for Declan and James. Fiona and Jane had dragged them around a mall during their trip to Vegas. Adding the ever bossy Holly J into the mix was problematic for them. But, to James, it was good that Fiona and Holly J were talking instead of arguing. It made his life that much easier.

"The loser pays for everyone's dinner tonight." Holly J stated, causing James to flinch. "You okay Jaime?"

James laughed quietly. "You have no idea love." Holly J's eyes told him to explain, so he just gave her a dismissive wave. "It's what Leila told me."

"What?" The in sync outburst from Fiona and Holly J was to be expected if Declan covering his ears before was indication.

"Yeah, she wanted to race me to the shore for a dinner date. But, I turned her down for the sister of a friend of mine." James said.

Holly J smiled. "Oh? And what is this friend's name?"

"Heather Sinclair? You know of her? Kind of a tough cookie." Holly J leaned into James a bit with a smile. "So are we going or what?"

Declan smirked. "I have an idea on making this more interesting."

"I'm listening." James said.

"Let's get to the car. I'll explain on the way." Declan said. "So let's go."

James looked at Fiona who also shared the same confused look. He let it drop for the moment, taking his board and girlfriend to the rented SUV that they had gotten to travel the island with. Whatever Declan had planned, James knew that it was probably something that they will probably regret in the future.

* * *

><p>Four hundred dollars. That was Declan's plan to up the ante. And seeing that the three couples (more like James and the Coyne twins) were so competitive about it, it was agreed on in a heartbeat. Originally, Declan had said two hundred, but since Fiona was so determined that she and Charlie could outride the other two, she doubled it and James agreed.<p>

James loved the idea since he has gone jet-skiing multiple of times in the past. He figured that Fiona and Declan must have too since they both were so confident in their skills. Charlie seemed to be a little rattled at the idea, while Jane and Holly J were practically down for whatever. All in all, this was going to be a great run.

After an hour or so, the six had gotten their equipment, now sitting on the flat water surface, each couple on one jet-ski.

"So where's the finish line?" Fiona asked, her hands gripping the handlebars of the Kawasaki Jet Ski STX that she had rented.

"We'll go around that buoy, then that one, and finally back here." Declan said pointing out the track with his index finger.

"Two laps." Fiona said. "We'll switch drivers on the second lap."

Declan's brows rose. "You think Charlie can handle one of these?"

"Watch." Fiona said confidently.

"Don't break a fingernail bird." James taunted.

Fiona smirked. "You should be worried about that four hundred you're going to be giving me."

James only smiled at that before he felt Holly J grip his waist tighter. He looked over his shoulder and saw the smile on her face.

"We got this." she said and James nodded before she added. "I've only ridden these things once though."

"Looking at Charlie and Jane, there's not really much any competition love." James said with a smile.

"Hey, surfer boy, you ready?" Declan asked.

"Ready when you are mate." James said.

"_I'll_ count down since you two can't be trusted." Fiona said. "Charlie, hold on." Charlie nodded at Fiona's statement. "Alright, here we go. Three… Two… One… Go!"

The sound of the watercrafts roaring and splashing water filled James's ears as he and his two close friends raced through the Pacific. He was shocked to see Fiona actually ahead, he and Declan riding neck and neck at the moment. Turning the first buoy, James was now a believer that Fiona must have done this plenty of times before, possibly recently.

"Go faster!" Holly J told him over the splashing and revving sounds.

James did as he was told only to find that Declan had the same thought in mind. Still, Fiona would prove to be better hitting the second turn first and flawlessly. It was very clear on who was most likely to win the first lap and it only bugged him to admit that Fiona might be the better rider. He then realized that he might not lose.

Charlie would have to do the second lap.

Nearing the starting spot, James felt Holly J's grip actually loosen and he remembered that, like Charlie, she would have to do the second lap for him. And like he noticed, Charlie was having a hard time with the throttle and he could see Fiona giving her directions. James came to the starting point and quickly switched places with Holly J, taking her hips into his hands.

"Go." he told her.

She did not hesitate to do as he said and he was a little frightened by her wild riding, no sex pun intended. They bounced off of the water roughly as she attempted to catch Fiona and Charlie, who was doing worse than they were.

"Let off on the turn, we don't want to flip the thing." James instructed.

Holly J nodded, doing as she was told, and actually passed Charlie who was forced to do a wide turn in order to compensate for her speed. James heard Holly J squeal in delight and smiled. She loved winning just like he did. Maybe more.

But James then realized that he was missing a participant in this race, two of them to be exact. Where were Declan and Jane? His eyes scanned the waters and found them missing for the moment. He did not worry much, but he did wonder if this had anything to do with their recent problem. Last night, there was a conversation about why men had a harder time saying 'I love you' than women (Fiona brought this up) and while Declan was proving that the two sexes were about equal with the predicament, Jane was noticeably quiet. Quiet enough for Holly J to force James to change the subject.

"We won!" James blinked. Had she really done this whole race by herself? "Jaime! We won!"

"I know." James lied. He was thankful that she did not turn around and see the lie in his eyes. "Um, where's your friend?"

"Hmm?" Holly J responded before looking around. "You're right. Where did they go? They owe me four hundred bucks!"

"You sound pissed." James said.

"I am! Those cheapskates think that they can con me?" Holly J said.

"Maybe you should calm down." James replied before a plot came into his mind. "Cool off maybe."

"I'll cool off when they pay up." Holly J said. She looked down to see James's hands snaking around her. "That's no way for me to cool off Jaime and you know it."

"Yeah, but this will." James said rocking over to the side, taking Holly J with him into the water.

As they plunged underwater, James saw Holly J's clearly unhappy face. The two stared at one another before she crossed his arms, apparently challenging him to see who could stay underwater longer. He only raised a brow, answering her challenge. The two stayed like that until she stuck her tongue out slightly, causing James to choke on a laughter. This forced him to resurface, Holly J soon following.

"You cheat a lot." James said as she swam close to him.

She kissed him. "Sore loser."

"Hey," Fiona said. James and Holly J were both shaken a bit, not even hearing the watercraft nearing them. "Where's Dex and Jane? They were just here a few minutes ago."

"Maybe they went back to the docks?" suggested James.

"We're going to see if they're there or not. You two don't drown each other. Or worse." James gave Fiona a nod and she and Charlie rode off.

"She's obviously jealous." James heard Holly J say. He gave a small shrug in the waters. "I hope everything is okay with Declan and Jane though. Last night…"

James frowned. "Is that what she called about?"

Holly J gave James a guilty look, knowing that she had lied and said it was Anya who called. Truthfully, she had not spoken to Anya since arriving in Hawaii.

"Come on," James said going to the Jet Ski. "Let's go find out what's wrong with your friend."

"Jaime," Holly J said. "Don't make it worse. Your aloofness about certain things normally bites you in the ass. Like not checking in with your mother, who calls Manny, who ruins our moments for nothing."

James smiled getting the subtle message. "I'll call her tonight."

Without another word, the two boarded the Jet Ski, James driving, and rode off to find their friends.

* * *

><p>The ride back to the resort was nothing but silence. It was apparent that Jane had been crying sometime before James and Holly J met them back at the docks. Whatever occurred between she and Declan must have been pretty dramatic. But by the time they arrived at the resort, she seemed to be in a better mood.<p>

"Girls' time." Fiona said taking Jane's and Charlie's hand. "Let's go."

James and Holly J exchanged a look before Holly J followed Fiona and the others. He then looked at Declan.

"My room." Declan said quietly.

James only nodded following his friend to the elevator to go to his suite. James knew that whatever it was, it must have been something huge for Jane to cry. James had never seen her cry before, but the smeared makeup was a dead giveaway that she had been.

Upon arriving at Declan's suite, James realized that Declan must have been just as shaken as he sighed heavily.

"So what's the problem mate? Jane looked pretty distress." James said.

Declan looked at James. "Let me ask you something. You ever plan a life with Manny or Holly J or even Fiona?" James frowned. "Just answer me."

"Something like that." James said.

"Jane wants us to 'get settled down' this year." Declan replied. "She's so bent on me saying I love her and…"

"Sophie?" Declan nodded a bit. "It's not easy, huh?"

Declan shook his head. "Honestly James, I don't see how you do it. You love Fiona, yet you're not afraid to do it again with Holly J, even though the same thing can happen again. Manny's having your son and you're still not worried about that."

"What are you getting at?" questioned James.

"You told Holly J that you loved her, right?" James nodded. "Well, do you love her _more_ than you did or do Fiona and- or- Manny?"

James was now silent. The question had crossed his mind the moment after his and Holly J finished their sex two nights ago. He realized that no matter how hard he tried, Fiona's reappearance in his life only made him miss what they had more. That, and how badly he hated Laura Coyne, but that was beside the point.

"Mate, Jane isn't Sophie. She won't cheat on you." James said.

"I don't want to think that low of her," Declan stated. "But the facts are, she did cheat on her boyfriend once."

"For you!" James countered.

"It doesn't matter. She did." Declan said. "I don't know if I can trust her fully, you know? Kind of like how you trusted Fiona enough to actually live with her. There're certain things that she won't tell me, like she's the aunt of Mia's daughter," James's eyes widened. "And it makes me question her. A lot."

James sighed. "She'll always hide secrets from you. Holly J hides quite a few from me and I don't worry."

Declan shook his head. "Fiona didn't. You knew about Bobby's abuse before I did. And she tells me everything." Declan paused before frowning. "What else has she told you?"

"I haven't spoken to your sister since earlier this year. What do you think she's told me? Nothing." James stated, though the limited time he has had with Fiona, a lot of information was exchanged. "Look, how about you just talk to her? Sit her down and tell her how you feel about her keeping secrets. If that doesn't work, then maybe you're right. Maybe there is something to question."

"But… I think I love her." James blinked in shock at the statement. "I don't know another girl who gets me like she does. No one."

James swallowed hard. Fiona understood him like no other girl. He admitted that to Sean in early September.

"Just… Just talk to her mate." James said. "Tomorrow's our last day here and it'll be better to go home with a smile than drama. Must I remind you about the Vegas trip?"

Declan nodded. "I guess you have a point. Cards?"

James shrugged. "Sure mate. Just remember that you already owe me four hundred."

"Right."

* * *

><p>After room service had delivered their wonderful meal, James and his friends ate in Declan's suite, speaking of their day. James kept an eye on Declan and Jane, seeing them sitting a lot closer than the previous night.<p>

Holly J's cell phone rang.

"Damn it Anya…" the strawberry blonde stating and she rose to answer her phone out of the room. "Anya this had better be good…"

"Wow. Does she always answer the phone like that?" Fiona asked, looking directly at James.

James shrugged. "That's her polite voice."

"Oh…" Fiona said. "Well, tomorrow is our last day together…" Fiona saw Declan's eyebrows rise. "In Hawaii. I'll be back at NYU and you guys at UST… I'm going to miss you… All of you that is."

"Summer'll be here before you know it bird." James told her.

"That's _so_ far away." Fiona said. "I can't wait that long to be back in Toronto."

"You hate Toronto, remember?" James eyed Declan as he said this. He knew what Declan was playing at, now that Jane seemed to be in a better mood.

Holly J returned into the living room and sat down on the floor near James again.

"Big problem." she said, gaining her boyfriend's attention. "Riley was kicked off of the team." James frowned at this. "Turns out he's been taking steroids. And when Anya confronted him about it…"

"He didn't hit her, did he?" James asked. Anya was a friend of his and an ex. If Riley touched her, no steroids in the world would save him.

"No, but he did trash our dorm pretty badly." James only released a small sigh of relief. "Um, I told her to stay with Chantay until we returned. And…"

"Oh brother…" Declan said.

"Shut up Coyne." Holly J stated before looking back at James. "I also told her she could stay at your place for a few days. Just until this blows over."

James sighed. "That's fine love. Just as long as he doesn't hit her, I'm alright."

Holly J kissed him. "That's why I love you."

It felt awkward for her to say that to him in front of people (i.e. Fiona) but James only smiled, preparing himself for the response that was fighting to reach his lips.

"I love you too." his voice almost cracked. He felt it. But he still kept the smile up.

"Well, if you two are done," began Fiona. "I want to say that it has been fun these past three days and tomorrow before we go, we should have breakfast together."

"That sounds like a great idea." Holly J said. "We'll be there bright and early."

Fiona gave Holly J a smile that James read as a fake smile. Though it seemed innocent and pleasant enough, he knew that the two women were not in each others' graces right now.

"Fi, Jaime, can I talk to you two for a sec?" Declan asked.

"Sure mate." James said getting up slowly, Fiona following suit.

Declan led the two out of the suite into the hall. James had no clue on what he was about to say and he figured neither did Fiona. But from how Declan looked at them, James knew that his friend had cooked something up.

"Alright, it's just the three of us. Talk." Declan said.

James frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"Fi. Talk." Declan said.

"Talk about what Declan?" Fiona asked, though James clearly saw the anger in her eyes. She knew what Declan was talking about.

Declan was obviously not intimidated by his sister's anger, something that James felt was slightly wrong. Declan always did his best to avoid Fiona's anger and depression. There had to be a good cause for him to go against his normal code of conduct.

"James," Declan said. "Fiona wants to tell you how badly she misses you and how she wants you to be back with her." James's eyes went from Declan's to Fiona's, though she was too busy glaring at her brother. "She told me last night how she couldn't sleep because-"

"You know what Declan," Fiona said, he voice raised with rage. "Fuck you! I can tell Jaime just how I feel without you butting in! If you don't like Charlie that much, just say so!" James and Declan were both taken back a bit as Fiona has never really shouted before. "You always do this! Whenever you can't do something, you bring up what other people have trouble doing! Why not just tell Jane that you're afraid of loving her and stop worrying about my life!"

"I'm doing this so he can stop you from drinking! Again!" Declan retorted.

James frowned. "You began drinking?"

Now it was Fiona who was quiet. James looked in-between the two siblings, remembering a time where he would not even care about getting in the middle of siblings arguing, and now nearly depending on it.

"Fiona, tell me, have you been drinking?" James asked again.

"Last night." she answered quietly.

"Does Charlie know?" Fiona shook her head. "You have to tell her bird."

"She'll leave me as soon as she knows." Fiona told him.

"Fi, you can't do this to yourself again." James said. "Did you try that trick they told you? Naming things around you to get your mind off of things?"

Fiona sighed. "Of course I did. But every time I described the things around me I kept getting stuck on one thing."

James knew what that one thing was; him and Holly J being together. He looked at Declan who was currently staring at the ceiling, something James learned he did when thinking heavily on something. Something must have gone on between the two last night or today.

"Can we just drop this?" Fiona asked.

"Sure." Declan said moving in-between Fiona and James to get back into the suite. "Whatever you want Fi."

James heard the door close behind him before he looked at Fiona.

"You're never going to forgive me, are you?" Fiona said to James. "I shouldn't have left with my mom. I should've told you about the Declan thing."

"Why did you leave?" asked James.

"I thought… I thought I'd be helping." Fiona replied. "If I left with my mom, my parents would be happy. After a while I would return with you and everything would be alright. But when they said NYU… I knew I made a mistake."

"I'm going to go back inside." James said. "The less we talk about this, the better."

"Why?" James reached for the doorknob.

"I don't want you drinking about it." James said. "The more we reminisce about it, the more you think about it. And we both have to go back to school and work and this isn't what we need. Charlie and Holly J… They don't deserve this."

"You're right but I can't just stop thinking about it like you." Fiona said.

"Just promise me that you won't drink again Fiona." James stated. "Please."

Fiona only stared at James before placing her hand on his on the doorknob.

"Like you," Fiona replied. "I can't make that promise."

"What's that supposed to mean?" James asked.

Fiona did not answer, just opening the door and stepping inside. James took a moment to gather himself before going back to the others inside.

"Hey," Holly J said to him quietly. "Everything alright? I've never seen you and the Coyne twins mad."

"It's fine." James answered.

"Jaime," James looked at Holly J, her eyes showing her concern. "Are you sure?"

James glanced at Declan, who sat with one arm around Jane's shoulder, and then at Fiona, who was too far in her thoughts to pay attention to Charlie.

"Yeah." James said looking at Holly J. "Everything's fine."

James saw the look in Holly J's eyes and knew that she was far from letting this drop. But for the sake of the night, she just leaned into him. For the first time in months, James hesitated to actually put an arm around her. His eyes traveled up to meet Fiona's, the two staring at one another for what seemed like an eternity. James only had one thought in his head as he stared at the brunette.

The more she was gone, the more he longed for her. And sooner or later, he would have her any- and everyway. Or so he hopes.


	5. Chapter 5

**_Chapter 5: Their Problems_**

Returning back home meant several things for James. Most noticeably he had a new temporary housemate. While he was friends with Anya, he has never really been in a place where it was just her, him, and Holly J. Now they would all be under one roof after classes ended.

Currently, James was leaving his English class, the other students leaving the lecture hall as soon as possible. Another composition was to be written, this on a past bad experience. What perfect timing?

"James," James turned to see a very pregnant Liberty moving towards him. "Have you seen J.T today?"

James shook his head. "No. Why?"

"I have an appointment and he's normally there." Liberty said before sighing. "Why can't he just stay still?"

"It's kind of his thing mate. Sorry." replied James. "Speaking of appointments, I should go check in on Manny to see her next date. She's probably driven Craig insane now."

"It's likely." Liberty told him. "I'm going to go search for J.T for a bit more before going to get the ultrasound for the hundredth time in my life."

James gave her a nod before parting ways.

While he and J.T have become good friends, there was still the slight hint in J.T's voice that led James to believe that he was still jealous. Despite it happening in high school, J.T still dated Manny and had some lingering feelings for her, though they were quickly dissolving. James figured that since J.T lost the chance to sleep with Manny, he would be pissed at everyone else who did. So for the man that knocks Manny up, i.e. James, J.T would always have a small tinge of envy for them.

While leaving the building, James thought about his last talk with Fiona before she got on her plane for New York. It was weird, considering that they had said two words to each other prior that, and that was "good morning." She gave him a regretful goodbye before declaring that she would call whenever she got the chance. And she hadn't, but James did not worry. Fiona was her own person and could take care of herself… For the most part.

"Jaime!" James cringed at the voice. Emma was _not_ happy. "You leave for Hawaii and don't call when you return?" Yep, she was completely pissed at him. "You jerk! And I was going to waste my time calling you!"

"Um, hi Em." It was a lame and useful attempt to calm her down, but James was desperate at the moment. "I would have called but I had to deal with the whole Anya thing."

"So you've heard?" James nodded. "Riley was called to the Director of Athletics' office. I doubt he'll be playing at all next year."

James shrugged. "I'm just looking out for Anya, that's all. I could care less whether he plays for the team or not."

"Aw, miss your ex?" Emma teased. "I bet you do. So tell me, how was Hawaii and don't skip on the Fiona news because Manny's already told me she was there."

James sighed as he walked with Emma.

"Well, it wasn't all bad. HJ was actually on her best behavior." James explained. "Fi and I talked about the little incident, but we've come to terms that this is what it is. I'm with Holly J, she's-"

"With another woman." Emma added.

"Right… She's with Charlie, and the four of us are quite happy." James finished. "So there's not much to say mate. Really there isn't."

"Mm-hmm. And my name is Darcy." Emma stated. "Come on. Tell me what _really_ happened. Did you kiss her? Did you tell her you loved her?"

"Manny put you up to this, didn't she?" James asked. Emma normally never forced James to talk, only coercing him here and there. Only Manny forced James to gossip.

"Maybe…" Emma said. "But that's only because she loves you and worries when you're choosing her son's stepmom."

James actually scoffed at the idea. It was his son too.

"Nothing is wrong with Holly J." James said.

"True, but there's a _lot_ wrong with Heather." Emma said pointedly. "And we both know that you are somehow friends with her, giving her all the more reasons to be around J.J."

"J.J?" James questioned. "So you guys have named him? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Um… Well…" James knew Emma was looking for a reasonable excuse, though he was just messing with her. He had left the naming of the child solely up to Manny and Emma so long as he was in there somewhere. "Jay and I found a house!"

"Manny told me." responded James. "So what's the name?"

"Well, we've decided to let it have your first name and your dad's last name." James gave a small nod. "So, James Joseph Wilder. She gave him her dad's first name for a middle name _and_ since I'm officially godmother slash aunt, I decided that if _I'm_ married to Jay, then my nephew will be J.J."

"As long as my mom approves, I'm okay. And Holly J won't be a bad stepmom, even if I do marry her." James said.

Emma paused in step. "What do you mean 'if'?"

James frowned. "I'm not going to propose to her anytime soon if that's what you're thinking." Emma then smiled brightly. "Oh no… What's that look for?"

"Because you _love_ her!" Emma said walking again.

"Holly J?"

"No! Fiona!" Emma replied before sighing. "I knew you two had a thing for each other. She couldn't keep her hands off of you!" James only smiled at the memory Emma was recalling. The night he took Fiona to The Break Room. Fiona had held onto his arm on their walk to the car, something he still has yet to ask her about. "But… On the flip side, it led my best friend to cocaine…"

"True." James said as they came to Emma's car. "But the pregnancy got her to stop."

"Momentarily." Emma said in a saddened tone.

James could only sigh. Manny's love for cocaine had become a fear of his and Emma's in the past and they were both relieved when the doctor announced that the baby was apparently unaffected. Yet. James kept saying that over and over in his head. Manny snorting the drug during her early weeks of her pregnancy could possibly cause for some birth defect and James feared that it would.

"She went to any morning classes?" James suddenly asked.

Emma nodded. "Yeah. She said that sitting down in the afternoon is boring. She actually misses taking orders from Paige."

"I was just checking since she hasn't called." James replied.

"You should be worried about Riley and Fiona." James gave Emma a nod. "I'll speak to you later, alright? I'll be at your place so you can see the pictures Jay and I got. Make sure it's a legal documentation."

"I'll be there, but so will Anya and most likely HJ." James told her. "Because they're dorm got trashed, Anya's rooming with me and HJ for a while."

"You're a good friend Jaime. But, I really do wish you'd go after Fiona again. I liked her." Emma said nearing her car before her phone began to ring. "That's Jay. Talk to you later."

James nodded before walking off. He wanted to focus on his attention on Anya's problem, seeing as Riley could go on another attack due to 'roid rage and damage more than just property, but he strayed to Fiona Coyne. He wondered how she was or if she told Charlie about her drinking in Hawaii. He then wondered if she continued drinking. She probably did. Hell, he wanted a drink after he returned home alone.

James only sighed. He had about an hour to go home and rest before leaving for work. What a long day this was going to be.

* * *

><p>It was a quarter after ten when James returned to his condo. In his hand was some food from the Break Room. While very little people ate there, James was quite used to the food. In fact, he almost favored it above everything else. Almost.<p>

But as he entered his home, he heard the TV on and frowned. Moving to the living room, he saw Anya and Holly J watching TV, both girls in their pajamas.

"How was work?" Holly J asked.

"Good." James said, forgetting that he had given Holly J a spare. Fiona was clouding his better judgment and for a second he swore she was the only person that had a key besides him. "Did you cook?"

"No. Brought something home." James smirked. Great minds thought alike. James sat his Styrofoam container on the countertop, moving for the refrigerator to get a drink. "Manny stopped by earlier. Something about kicking your ass for your message."

James laughed. "Oh yeah…"

"Is that all you have to say?" James now saw Holly J looking at him as he sat at a bar stool.

James nodded. "It was pretty funny." James then looked at Anya, who had yet to say anything. "How are you Anya? You've been real quiet."

"I called Riley to talk… He didn't answer." Anya said. "Jaime, I know that's not him. Riley's real sweet. He would never hurt me on purpose. Not like Sav."

"Oh brother." Holly J said while lazily rolling her eyes. "Anya, seriously, can you get over him? That's been months ago. Besides, he's after some cougar."

"Winnie is about three years older than me." James stated.

Holly J glared at him. "Are _you_ trying to date her?" James shrugged as he opened his container to reveal his Buffalo wings and fries. "Well fine. Let's see how well you sleep tonight when I sleep in Anya's room."

James smirked. "If that's what you're going to do to punish me HJ, you failed. Badly."

"We're not all like your ex." Holly J responded. Unbeknownst to Holly J, the statement stung James probably more than it should have. He knew that Fiona was not interested in women, per se, more like interested in finding true love regardless the gender.

"Don't say that Holly J. That's mean." Anya reprimanded, though the Sinclair had little care. "So, will you help me talk to him tomorrow Jaime? I-"

Anya was cut off by a loud knock on the door. James, who was currently eating, sighed heavily as he grabbed a napkin to wipe his hands as he went to answer the door, Holly J right behind him.

Opening the door, James saw Adam Torres.

"Adam? What the hell are you doing here this late? Does your mom know you're out?" James questioned.

Adam sighed. "Something terrible has happened. Can I come in?"

James released a small sigh before stepping aside. If Emma had become something akin to an older sister, then Adam was definitely a little brother. He watched the soon-to-be completed male move in past his girlfriend, heading for the living room.

"Who is this?" Anya asked in a polite, yet surprised, tone.

"Adam, this is Anya. Anya, Adam." James introduced as he went back to his meal, Holly J finding her spot back on the couch.

Adam looked at James. "Isn't she the soldier ex you was talking about?" James nodded, knowing sometime tomorrow this would bite him in the ass. "She is hot."

"Aw. Aren't you cute?" Anya said. "And you're quite handsome yourself."

"Why are you here, mate? You know your mom will be here five seconds, so just come out with it." James stated.

"I cheated on Clare." If James was not biting into another wing, his jaw might have been agape. "With her friend… Alli."

"Whoa, Sav's sister?" Adam nodded at Anya's question. "You had sex with Sav's little sister? Do her parents know?"

James realized that Anya did not know Adam's back story, so while she was thinking Adam had sex with Alli like it sounded, James knew Adam just skillfully used his fingers to temporarily replace what he did not have yet. If the circumstances would have been different and Adam was single, James would have been proud at the boy's accomplishments.

"Did you use protection?" Anya asked.

"What kind of big brother would I be if I didn't teach him rule number one?" Holly J and Anya looked at James as he ate.

"The kind that gets a girl pregnant in Vegas." Holly J said.

"Ooh… Burn." Adam added. James shot him a glare. "Sorry."

"And you," Adam flinched as Holly J's attention turned to him. "What is wrong with you? I thought you were seriously into Clare?"

"I was!" Adam said. "And then there were these rumors that she was sleeping with her stepbrother and then I found out that she kissed Eli from a friend of mine."

"And who was this so-called friend?" asked Holly J. She knew how gossip worked. It could be used to hurt foes or help friends.

"Bianca…" Adam's words came out slowly as he waited for James's outburst.

"Bianca? DeSousa right?" Adam nodded slowly. "Alright Adam, why are you hanging out with her? Isn't she the one that ruined your life?"

"It's not like that anymore. She's dating Drew against my mom's orders. I have to help them sneak around and in exchange, she helps me out." explained Adam, though James doubted that she could help anyone out. "Look, Bianca's story makes sense. And when I asked Clare about it, she just brushed it off. Not the Jake stuff, but the Eli stuff. And so-"

"You found Little Bhandari. Way to go Adam, you're nothing like your big brother. And by that, I mean Drew." Holly J said.

James swallowed the food in his mouth.

"Alright Adam, tell me again how this happened." Adam nodded at James.

"Well," Adam recounted. "After school, I went to ask Clare about what Bianca told me. I don't really care about the Jake rumors because they're clearly false. But when I asked her about Eli, she kind of dodged the subject and said she'd call later. So, I went to go find somewhere to cool my head, and there was Alli."

"And bam. You just did her right then and there." James said.

Adam frowned. "In front of The Dot? No." James just shrugged. "So then we head to my place where no one was and… Well… That's when it happened."

James sighed. "Alright. And your mom still hates Alli, right?" Adam nodded. It was no secret that when Audra Torres disliked someone, she made it her duty to let everyone else know. It still shocked James as to why the woman had taken a liking to him, but he was not complaining. "Alright mate, let's get you home and see if we can't explain this."

"That's the thing…" Adam stated. "She kind of walked in on us…"

"Oh dear God." Holly J said. James only glanced at Holly J. The two of them had recently been caught by Holly J's mother. "What?"

James only shook his head. Leave it to Adam to stop by at ten at night with news like this. Then again, James realized that the boy could not have just walked into the Break Room (despite Drew and Bianca doing it quite frequently) and come up to the bar to talk. In fact, Drew and Bianca did not even come to the bar when they came.

"So are you going to break up with her?" James asked suddenly.

"I don't know. She's still my best friend." James smirked at this.

"If you're going to date a friend, don't date your best friend. Break ups are the absolute worst." James stated.

Holly J smiled. "Speaking from experience, huh Jaime?"

James did not reply to his girlfriend. Unlike the first time, this stab was a hundred percent intentional.

"From personal experience," James began. "I know dating a Sinclair can be a pain in the ass. Make sure you dodge that in the nearby future Adam or else."

James noticed the smile on Holly J's face. She always saw him as a challenge since there were moments that he just would not stand for certain things said or done. And for some reason he could not understand, she _liked_ that. Blue was willing to do almost everything she said, and yet she liked James because he was uncaring about a lot of things.

Weird.

James rose. "Come on Adam, let's get you home before I get dragged down with you."

"But what about Clare?" Adam asked.

"I'll tell you what to do on the way there. Now, let's go." James responded as he grabbed his keys. "HJ, I'll be back as soon as his mom is done yelling at me too. I swear I should've never done that stupid project."

James moved to give Holly J a brief kiss and then lead Adam towards the front door. As the two left, Adam stepped in front of James, now walking backwards.

"So, you talked to Fiona? Is she still as hot as she was earlier?" Adam asked.

James grinned. "Hotter. And her girlfriend isn't bad looking either mate."

"So… Is she like lesbian or bisexual?" Adam questioned.

"Bi." James answered.

Adam gave a breath of relief. "Good. I'll be eighteen next year." James chuckled as he pressed the button for the elevator. "Do you still think of her? As in more than a friend."

"It's a lot more complicated than do or don't. There's always an outside factor that just makes things… Different." James said as the doors opened.

"Question," Adam began as the two stepped onto the elevator. "If you _were_ to cheat on Holly J with Fiona and Holly J gave you the choice to either stay with her or go back with Fiona, which do you choose?"

"Does this have anything to do with Alli?" James asked pressing the button for the lobby.

Adam was silent, but James really did not need him to answer the question. Of course this had something to do with Clare and Alli and Eli and possibly Drew too. For some reason, Adam secretly idolized his brother for the majority of the time. James really did not understand it until he met _his_ younger sister at Christmas. Hayden _loved_ James, and again, he really had no clue why.

"Let me tell you something mate," James said. "Holly J would _never_ ask a rhetorical question. Nothing like that, at least."

"Why?" Adam asked.

"Because truth be told," stated James. "If a certain Laura Coyne had not have showed up at my door, there wouldn't be a Holly J and me." Adam frowned, but nodded. "Tell me, how much do you like Alli? And be honest."

"Well… She's hot. And she's smart. Really smart." Adam responded. "Her parents have been hard on her lately though and after the whole Drew fiasco, I'm surprised she even says my last name because it's the same."

"Good to know. Now how much do you like her?" Adam sighed.

"I don't know. Enough to break about fifty rules and listen to her life story." Adam said with a half-grin.

James laughed. "Women… They will do that to you." The elevator doors opened. "But if you feel strongly about Alli, and I mean at least on par with Clare, then you need to just sit down and talk to Clare about it."

"Seriously?" James nodded.

"Vegas, I knocked Manny up and made out with Holly J." James said. "Talked it over with Fi, now everything's good. Well… As good as it's going to be anyways."

"So you just talked to her?" Adam asked and James nodded. "And she forgave you?"

"Not just like that. There was a shopping spree… But I don't think Clare's that kind of girl. She's more forgiven." replied James. "So talk it out, make sure you _calmly_ and _clearly_ tell her your side and be _very_ understanding to her point-of-view."

Adam frowned. "What happens if I don't?"

"Then I'll see you in the next life mate." James said with a smile as he patted Adam's shoulder. "Good luck though."

Adam only grinned.

James led Adam to his white SUV, glad that his mother was eager to trade one of her two vehicles (she had the Explorer and a Corolla) for his Nissan. He loved his GT-R, but it got cramped whenever more than one passenger rode with him. The back was always crowded.

"Now let's get you home. Something tells me that your mom won't be happy." James said to Adam.

* * *

><p>And she wasn't.<p>

"Where were you?"

There were a number of mothers James had come across while living in Toronto. They included Spike Nelson, Mary-Kate Sinclair, Julietta Santos, and Laura Coyne, yet none of them put him in line like Audra Torres did. There was something about the woman that really frightened him. She had too many connections and she just knew things. Really private things.

"Mom, please don't get mad-"

"Oh, I'm already passed that." Audra said before looking at James. "Did he go to you?" James only nodded. This would not end well for his high school friend. Audra sighed. "So I guess you know."

"About him and Alli? Yeah." James said.

"I knew that girl was trouble." Audra stated as she not-so gently pulled Adam into the house by his arm. James followed only to protect the boy from murder. Any physical harm in-between time was probably deserved. "I can't believe this Adam. Drew, I could see, but you? You were dating Clare. What happened to her?"

"She went off with her ex." Adam said dryly.

Audra turned to James, who sighed. When he said that Adam had become something like his younger brother, he meant it. That meant that Audra turned to him on very few dealings with Adam. Things such as this.

"I don't know her side of the story because he just showed up a few minutes ago." Wrong thing to say as Audra's eyes gave Adam a well-trained glare. "But," James added in attempt to save Adam. "I do know Alli and she's not a bad person. She makes a mistake here and there, but she's in the Gifted Program and is going to attend UST's summer program."

"And what about having sex with _both_ of my sons?" Audra asked.

James saw a small smile on Adam's face. It was not that he had had sex with Alli that he was smiling at, but for the simple fact that his mother had fully accepted him as being a boy. Even after she agreed with the whole surgery, along with two counselors and Mr. Torres, she sometimes would slip up and refer to Adam as a girl.

"Alli never slept with Drew." James stated.

"Never?"

"Ever." Audra crossed her arms at James's words. "Drew told me himself. Gave him a better reputation to, um, well you know."

"That lying…" James released a silent breath from his mouth. If he could shift Audra's attention from Adam to Drew, he could make it back in time to get some decent sleep. "Thank you James. I will talk to my son about the birds and the bees."

"Mom!" Adam's face noticeably reddened, embarrassed by the entire situation.

James neared the door. "I'll check in on them in school whenever I have time to make sure it's a one-time thing Mrs. Torres."

She gave him a nod, her eyes never leaving Adam's. James left the house with a smile. His little brother had taken one large step towards manhood. Even at the expense of cheating on Clare, who James believed was with Eli as rumored, Adam still did the proverbial act.

He couldn't be more proud if he tried.

* * *

><p>After returning home to a nice shower, James crawled under his sheets, surprised to see Holly J awake. She was currently staring at the ceiling in thought.<p>

"Are you okay?" James asked her quietly.

She rolled so that she was facing him completely.

"Do you think I'm bitchy?" Although James frowned at the question, he really wanted to tell her that he did on her worst days. "Anya says that I was after telling her that her boyfriend or ex-boyfriend or whatever he is, is a junkie."

James sighed. "HJ, you might want to be considerate of her feelings. You know she's trying to move past Sav."

"Jaime, that was _months ago_. Christ, she's been with you since then!" Holly J said. "And he's been taking steroids for twice that long. I just want her to see that."

"Not everyone sees the same thing you do, mate." James said. "For starters, some people say that I'm a complete jackass and carefree. But, we both know that can't be true if I care about you."

Holly J smiled. "You're smooth Nichols, I'll give you that."

"Better than you know Sinclair." James said.

"Tell me," James fought a groan. And he was about to doze off too… "Is it weird that your ex is sleeping in your home while your current sleeps in your other ex's bed?"

James smiled. "Is it weird to you that I've kissed both of them before kissing you?" Holly J just rolled her eyes. "I'm fine. Anya's fine. You're fine. And hopefully Fiona's sober." James saw the look in Holly J's eyes and regretted opening his mouth. "Don't go telling Jane this."

"But she's her friend and she needs to know." replied Holly J.

"Yeah, well I'm a closer friend." James retorted.

Holly J frowned. "James, she's dating her brother."

"Holly J, promise me that you will never _ever_ bring this up in front of Jane. If it ever got out that I told, she'd never forgive me." James saw the look in his girlfriend's eyes and for the second time, he regretted what he said.

"If it means that much to you, I won't." Holly J told him.

"Thanks love." James said. "And to answer your question, no, I don't think you're bitchy. Stubborn at points and a damn evil tease, but not bitchy."

"I'd better not hear differently from Heather." Holly J responded as she rolled to put her back against his chest. "My mom wants us over at dinner, by the way. Thursday."

"Okay." James said tiredly as he closed his eyes.

"James… You didn't lie to me when you said that you loved me, right?" Now James was almost fully awake.

"No. Why?" he asked.

"Nothing." James was confused as she pressed up against him before moving her head to give him a kiss. "Night."

"Night." James said as she grabbed one of his arms and moved it around her waist.

James felt something amiss with this seemingly perfect picture. While his girlfriend slept in his arms, he felt like she was unknown to him. She was hiding something and he wanted to know exactly what it was. But for now, he would close his eyes and go to sleep. He would deal with it in the morning.


	6. Chapter 6

**_Chapter 6: Hit and Run Pt. I_**

James looked at the dark-haired woman who was resting her legs in his lap. If there was one thing he had learned, it was that Manny Santos made being pregnant fashionable. She made sure that her swollen stomach did not draw attention away from her other assets, such as flawless hair or dimples.

"So you'll help us right?" James's attention turned to the blonde in his kitchen.

"Sure Em." James said.

"Question," James heard Jay say as he finished his cigarette on the balcony and reentered the condo. "Why don't you have parties here again?"

"Because he can't. Stop asking the same damn question." Manny replied.

"It's alright." James said rubbing her legs in an attempt to soothe her. "Just breathe."

Manny gave him a stern look. "James, if this brat doesn't play soccer, I swear to you that I will rip his legs off and beat him with it."

"Well somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed." commented Jay in a low tone, though his wife heard him and reprimanded him with a slap to the arm. "Seriously Greenpeace, boxing. You would be great in it."

"How many bedrooms is the house?" James asked.

"Three." Emma said. "But they're kind of small."

James shrugged. "Better than your dorm and Jay's apartment, right?"

"Hey. My apartment is more than just a crappy apartment. It's my crappy home." While James smirked at this, Emma and Manny rolled their eyes. "I'd appreciate it if you showed it some respect. Not all of us have our fancy condo bought by our rich ex-girlfriend."

"Speaking of which," Manny said shifting the pillow behind her head a bit. "I spoke to Fiona two days ago." James frowned. "I got her number off of your cell. She was doing some sort of art project, but she says hi."

"Ignoring that you probably stole and broke into my phone love," James began. "But why did you call her again?"

"Because she's _my_ pick on who my son's future stepmom should be and he totally agreed with me." James saw the smile on Manny's face and let it go. He would never win anyway.

He then rested the back of his head on the couch. School was over for the day and he still had to go to the Sinclair's for dinner. The only problem he had was Anya being here alone. She had refused to crash Holly J's dinner (though they both agreed that Heather would do just that) and stated that she would be fine alone.

"Seriously babe," Manny continued. "I seriously don't like the idea of having my son around the infamous Holly J Sinclair. I would prefer Fiona in everyway."

James did not reply again. He could tell her that Craig's crack addiction was a worry for him, but he didn't. While James got away with a lot with Manny, bad-talking Craig Manning was not one of them. And he was in no mood to argue.

"Maybe you should date her then. You'd have a better shot than Jaime would." Jay said.

"Jason!" Emma chastised.

James laughed at this. Not at the statement of course, but how this was becoming a normal thing. Emma loved her husband and James understood that clearly. Yet every so often, Emma would go on one of her rants on Jay and made it seem like they hated each other.

"You cannot say things like that! Be courteous of Jaime's feelings!" Emma continued.

Jay only shrugged. "He's alright with it, so lighten up Greenpeace."

Emma crossed her arms. "You're so immature."

"And they're the married couple." Manny said causing James to laugh a bit harder.

"Better married to him than pregnant with Jaime's baby." retorted Emma. "Especially while you're dating Craig, of all people."

"And what's wrong with Craig?" Manny asked seconds before James heard his door opened. "Oh great… She's here."

Holly J moved into the room frantically, her breath unsteady.

"Jaime…" she panted. "I need… Your help…"

James frowned as he sat up. "What's wrong?"

"Riley…" That was all Holly J had to say as James stood up, making sure to keep Manny's legs on the couch.

"Where is he? Where's Anya?" Holly J gave James a worried look which caused James to move for his keys. "Coming Jay?"

"Of course." Jay said. Emma was going to argue, but he kissed her in order to keep her quiet. "See ya later Greenpeace."

"Bring back something to eat." Manny said.

James gave her a nod before leaving with Holly J and Jay.

"Where are they?" James asked.

"Our dorm room." Holly J answered. "He's gone completely crazy Jaime! He punched Peter!"

James only sighed. This was going to be a long day.

* * *

><p>James pushed his way through the small crowd in the hallway and into the room, Jay and Sean on his heels. Declan was already on the scene, staring at his cousin's boyfriend who was nursing a bloody (possibly broken) nose. Victoria was comforting Anya on a bed.<p>

"What happened here?" James asked.

Declan sighed. "Well, Riley went on a rampage and Peter caught a blow to the face." James gave a small nod. "And as you can see, it was pretty painful."

"Fuck you." Peter mumbled.

"Why did he hit you, mate?" James asked.

"Because Peter claims that Riley kissed him." James stared at Declan. "Look, I'm only telling you what I've been told. If you want the story, ask Anya as soon as she stops crying. Again."

James turned to see Anya, now crying onto Holly J's shoulder as Victoria rubbed her back. He did not see any bruise on her, so he was alright for the moment. If Riley _had_ touched Anya…

James closed his eyes and sighed heavily. He really needed to get Fiona out of his mind. Not only was he thinking of her, he was thinking about what she did or did not go through with Bobby.

"Where'd he go?" asked Sean.

"He ran like a fucking bitch." Peter said, the bloody napkin over his nose making him sound nasal.

Declan smirked. "I don't think you want to try that Peter. He might finish what he started."

Peter did not respond verbally, his eyes giving Declan a dark glare. James looked at Sean and Jay who both shrugged before moving to Anya and the girls.

"Hey," he said as squatted in front of her. "You alright Anya?" She shook her head. "What happened? Did he hurt you?"

Anya seemed to have calm down a bit and looked at James. He momentarily cringed at the sight. While she looked physically fine, safe for her smeared makeup and slightly disheveled hair, he could see the emotional pain this was causing her.

"This isn't him Jaime. It's the steroids." pleaded Anya. James saw Holly J roll her eyes, but Anya missed it. "I don't know what to do anymore!"

"He kissed me!" Peter called from his spot.

James heard Sean and Jay snicker from behind him yet kept the grin from his face. While it was humorous to picture Peter's face _if_ Riley kissed him, this was a serious matter. James would see it that way until _after_ it was done with.

"Listen mate," James said calmly to Anya. "I'll talk to him." Anya actually rolled her eyes much like her friend beside her. "What's that for?"

"Like how you 'talked' to Bobby? No thanks." James would have retorted, but he heard the humor in her voice. That was good. "Why can't I just find someone to be happy with?"

"Honey, let me tell you. A good man is _so_ hard to find." Victoria said. The four males in the room shot her a hardened glare, all but one of them being in a relationship. "I didn't say it was impossible, jeez."

James stood up, his legs actually growing tired of his squatted position. He looked over at Sean and Jay knowing that they could read him at the moment. They did help him find Bobby after all.

"Don't tell Emma and I'm in." Jay said.

"Deal." James replied.

"Um, Captain America," James looked at Holly J. "When were you going to run it by me that you're going to play hero again?"

"HJ-"

"I don't necessary like it, you know? And what about dinner? Did you forget that too?" Holly J asked. "Seriously Jaime, I think you worrying about some Greco-Neanderthal on steroids is pretty stupid. Even if it is for Anya's safety."

James only smiled. While he had told her a partial lie two nights ago, he knew for a fact that Holly J could indeed be bitchy. And sadly, he loved that side of her as much as he loved the not-so bitchy side of hers.

"I won't go before tonight. I promise, love." James said.

Holly J just crossed her arms. "Uh-huh."

"Well," Jay said. "If you guys don't mind, I have a wife. A really hot wife at that and not some large quarterback trying to rape me."

"Fuck you." Peter said again.

"Uh, I have to get to the garage." Sean said. "Jay, don't be late for your shift again."

James saw that Jay went to go for some comeback, but Sean left before it came out. Obviously, Sean was still a bit sore that Jay and Emma decided to stay married. Then again, everyone knew that Sean still had feelings for Emma. Amy was just an in-between.

"Jaime," Declan said breaking James's thoughts. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

James nodded and followed his friend out into the hall, glad that the crowd had left.

"So what is it, mate? Need help on a play or something?" Declan sighed heavily causing James to realize where this is going. "Something's wrong with Fiona."

"Charlie walked in on her passed out." James released a soft sigh. He figured it would happen sooner or later. "She said she didn't tell our parents, but if she did, you know what she's going to do."

James nodded. "I do. But what do you want me to do about it? My place is full so it's not like I can hide her there."

"Talk to her." James released a small snort. "Jaime, I wouldn't ask this if I thought she'd ignore you, alright? But obviously something is causing her to drink again. You know first hand how she once used drinking to escape things."

"What does she have to escape?" Declan gave James a look that questioned if James's question was rhetorical or not.

"You're kidding, right?" replied Declan. "Look, call her sometime today."

"With all due respect, but your sister may need help. More than I can give." James said. Declan's eyes showed his momentary anger. "Hear me out, alright? I can't do anything for Fiona. Your mom doesn't want me near her and sneaking off to see her makes me look like I'm cheating on Holly J."

"Right. See you around." Declan said backing away.

"Hey. When do I ask you to step out on Jane for something like this?" Declan paused in his steps and glared at James. "Besides, it was_ you_ that passed on the message for me to leave her alone? That's what I'm trying to do here."

"I'm asking for you to help the woman you claimed to love." Declan told James. "Or were you lying to my sister just to sleep with her?"

"It wasn't a lie." James replied.

"Then prove it." Declan said walking away.

James only sighed heavily. He once believed that he would run into Fiona in the future, they would laugh about their past, and that was it. However, now he was wondering if this was going to be more complicated than that. Holly J and Fiona's former hatred for each other had diminished, but there was some tension there. And since returning from Hawaii, James could feel some tension from Declan as well.

Sighing again, James moved back into Anya and Holly J's dorm room, Victoria now talking to Peter on Anya's bed while Holly J and Anya talked on Holly J's. He frowned, realizing that Jay must have slipped out during his talk to Declan.

"Hey, is everything alright?" James did not immediately reply to Holly J. He figured she heard the conversation. She normally did.

"I wish." Holly J gave him a nod that meant that they would talk about it later. "How's she doing?"

"I got in touch with Sav." Anya announced. "He said that he'll find Riley and talk to him. I'm going to stay with Chantay tonight."

James frowned. "Why's that?"

"I don't want to intrude on you and Holly J. It's bad enough that…" Anya's words died and James saw the angered look his girlfriend shot his ex. "I just don't want to intrude."

"You're not 'intruding' on us." replied James.

Holly J looked at her cell before sighing and rising.

"I'm going to be late for work." she said. "Anya, do what you want. Just don't get yourself killed. I'll never forgive you." James saw the smile on Anya's face, knowing that this was just how Holly J showed worry. Holly J then moved towards James and kissed him. "See you later. I have to go get my uniform."

James smirked. "That plaid skirt can't really be considered 'uniform'. I've seen lingerie that reveals less than that, love."

Holly J smiled. "Well then I won't wear it for breakfast anymore, now will I?"

"She serves you breakfast in that? Lucky bastard." Peter said before Victoria elbowed him in the arm. "Ow! Dammit woman, can't you see I'm injured here?!"

Holly J took that moment to leave, muttering about immature losers as she did so. James looked at Anya, ready to question what she was going to say, before Victoria spoke up.

"Declan tell you about Fifi?" James nodded. "Hmm… I told her that it would happen. If I didn't need Peter to win my races, I'd jump on you the first moment I got."

"Way to make me feel important." Peter said rising. "I need a cigarette. This is… Hell, I need something stronger than that."

"I know who's making special brownies." Victoria said in a giddy voice as she stood beside Peter. "It's like two birds with one stone. No pun intended."

"Wait," James said. "What do you mean that you told her that this would happen?"

Victoria shrugged. "When you guys were doing your down-low thing, I told her that she should just break up with Bobby and move on with you. You kept her sober Jaime, I'm not going to lie. And after she went back to New York, I told her to keep in touch or else." Victoria paused and released a tired sigh. "No one seems to listen to me for some reason."

"Trust me. It does the world good not listening to you." said Peter as he led his girlfriend to the door.

"Seriously Jaime," Victoria said as she paused beside him. "I'm worried that she might do something dangerous and stupid. Call her. She's dealing with Aunt Laura and Uncle Harry's problems firsthand. She needs you."

"Me?" Victoria nodded with a small smile.

"You're the only one that listens." she joked as she left.

James shook his head a bit to get the words out. Truthfully, he was agreeing with both Coynes and what they had to say. He needed to talk to Fiona. He needed to at least attempt to help her. Not just because he loved her dearly, but because he worried about her. That, plus it would stop Declan from bugging him about it.

James sat down on the bed beside Anya, she instinctively leaning onto his shoulder. His exes and current were driving him to the brink of… Well, becoming his father. There was nothing he would like to do than to hop on the first plane to Australia and go stay at his grandparents' estate in Newcastle. But, his mother had told him to face his problems and solve them. So now he cursed his mother for his upbringings and thought of a way to solve his problems so that he kept his girlfriend, Fiona was sober, Anya was safe, and Manny was happy.

The women in his life…

* * *

><p>The dinner at Holly J's parents' house went pretty smoothly, even with Heather throwing constant jibes here and there at the couple.<p>

"So, Manny's doing fine?" Mary-Kate, Holly J's mother, asked James. He nodded in response though quite uncomfortable with the conversation, even if it was nothing new. "That's good. So do you know the due date?"

"Sometime during the second week of May." Mary-Kate nodded at the response. "They've actually picked out a good name for him."

"Really? What is it?" Mary-Kate asked.

"Does it have something to do with Las Vegas and promiscuous parents?" Heather added.

James spared Heather a small glance. Like Holly J, there were moments where he found Heather's comments completely unnecessary. Of course, he was used to them now, but he still hated them.

"No. They've named him James Joseph Wilder. My first name, Manny's dad's name, and my father's last name." Josh, Holly J's father, seemed interested in the topic now.

"So you'll be able to raise a boy, huh? You're lucky. Raising two girls is not fun." John said with a smile.

"Gee Dad, thanks a lot." Heather said.

"Yeah. Way to make us feel good." Holly J added.

"Yeah, well, that's _if_ I get to even look at him." James replied to John's statement. "Between Manny and Emma, they're going to smother the poor boy. And then there's my mom and Manny's mom and Emma's mom. I won't get to see my own son."

Mary-Kate smiled. "The media will flip when they see the first and only grandchild of Michael Lee Wilder."

"I'm sure his mother will take more pictures than the paparazzi. First Christmas and embarrassing pictures and such. Then again, that's what parents do right?" James somehow regretted this as the Sinclair parents looked at one another.

"I don't know," Holly J said. "There isn't a lot of embarrassing baby pictures of me."

"Oh we have tons!" Mary-Kate said.

"My first Christmas?" Holly J questioned.

The room grew quiet before Heather yawned loudly.

"I should be getting home." Heather said while stretching a bit. "Dinner was great Mom, as always."

Holly J frowned. "What are you doing Heather?"

"I'm leaving Holly. Seriously." Heather said.

James watched his girlfriend's eyes narrow. This was slightly odd, seeing as Holly J did not correct her older sister, something she _always_ did whenever Heather left off of the "J" in Holly J. He then realized that Mary-Kate had stood up, collecting the dirty dishes and began to move quietly towards the kitchen.

"What is going on?" Holly J asked, her eyes looking at her father.

"I-" John was cut off by James's cell phone ringing.

"Sorry." James said, ready to turn it off.

"Oh no, take it." John said standing. "Dinner's done anyway."

James shrugged it off and answered his phone.

"Adam this better be-"

"She ran away James!" James frowned heavily. "Alli! She ran away!"

James rose from his seat. "Mate, calm down. I'm on my way, alright?"

Adam did not respond, hanging up. Holly J stood up with James, worried about whatever it is he was so tensed about.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"Alli ran away." James told her. "Adam's freaking out. I'm going to go over there." Holly J nodded. "Thanks for dinner Mr. Sinclair."

"Anytime James." John said.

As James left for the door with Holly J, he listed the number of problems he had now. The first one was Anya and Riley. Anya was his friend and Riley had blown a gasket. He worried about her. Next was Fiona. He had yet to call her and he wondered if she talked to either her brother or cousin. His mind then wondered to Manny for some reason. All the talk and questions about her pregnancy had him thinking about her former drug addiction. Finally, his mind wondered to the Sinclair family. Obviously something was amiss and he had no choice but to understand what she felt. Her parents and older sister was obviously hiding something.

Sighing quietly, James realized that all of these problems had to be put on the back burner for a while as he went to the Torres home. Alli was missing and Adam was probably worrying more than he should. Then again, James knew how it felt when a potential lover disappears.


End file.
